You've probably heard me say that Chet Holmgren is the most special prospect in a long time. Scratch that. John Butler is both special, and bizarrely weird. He is more or less a seven foot guard who weighs less than a lot of guards. His ball handling ability and knack for shooting the ball is very unique. Butler is completely an upside pick. Don't expect big numbers, if numbers at all. He will spend a lot of time in the G-League, but his potential is unmatched.

Comparison: Nobody

Projected Draft Range: 30-60

Height 7'1

Weight 175 lbs

Wingspan 7'2

DOB 12/4/02 (Draft Age: 19)

Pre-Draft Team Florida State Seminoles

Offense

• Incredibly unique, 7'1 C&S guy.

• Pure looking shot, good mechanics, fluid release. Can speed up release. Really nice shooting base.

• P&P prospect.

• Only 11/25 from the FT line. Small sample.

• Way too weak to do anything around the bucket right now, not at all a vertical athlete.

• Needs to pack on pounds quick if he is to see any significant time in 22=23 season.

• Doesn't have any off-the bounce scoring right now, eye test says he could find the touch though.

Defense

• Very unique on both ends of the floor. Moves well, has plus-plus length.

• Strides cover a lot of ground

• Weak side shot blocker and rim protector with upside to be more when some strength is added.

• Highly switchable, adding tons of intrigue. There's a reason FSU recruited him.

Swing Factors

• Strength/Weight - More strength will add to his game in a variety of ways on both ends of the floor. He will be more likely to absorb contact offensively and finisher at a higher clip. Defensively he can become a stronger rebounder, and will be much less likely to ever get bullied around the basket. This is a must and will surely happen in some capacity, but theres just no guarantee a weak 19 year old is a weak 24 year old.

• Off the bounce shooting - If he gains the ability to hit pull ups and shoot some off the dribble his value becomes even greater than just a stationary large shooter.

Role

• A sharp shooting big who plays rover defensively and is oozing with potential versatility.

• LOW: Butler never gains the strength to grade him league average and he is easily pushed around. He comes into games as a shooter, and defensively versatile big. Butler settles in as a role player in the lower end of a rotation.

• HIGH: Butler gains the strength and weight necessary to survive the NBA season and bang around with some guys in the league, he naturally improves as a rebounder as a result. As a shooter Butler is a dead eye early, over his first few seasons we start to see the ability to shoot some off the dribble and at level 2. He's able to finish with a newfound efficiency due to the strength increase. Defensively he is the crown jewel of the 22 class, he is an elite weak side rim protector, moves his feet well enough to guard 2-5 and even some 1's. His strength allows to move closer to a traditional rim protector in spurts when needed. Overall Butler is a highly sought after two-way player with a one of a kind body & game combination leading him to All Defensive considerations for a number of years.

Ranking Scale:

Athleticism: 6/8

3pt shot: 6/10

Finishing: 4/10

Handle: 6/10

Playmaking: 3/8

Defensive Versatility: 7/10

Defensive Positioning: 4/8

Rebounding:2 /6

NBA Fit: 7/10

Total Score: 45/80

Player analysis

John Butler is such an interesting prospect that I’ve been on the hype train for a few months now, he is a 7’1 freshman that can block shots and plays on offense as a wing, he is only around 170ish pounds which skinny in an unheard of way for the league, that doesn’t seem to bother him too much on the court and he actually uses it to an advantage. Butler mainly plays on the perimeter on offense, he is a good shooter especially for a big and won’t have problems in the NBA. He has a good handle and feel for the ball which wasn’t explored nearly enough at Florida State. Despite a really skinny frame he doesn’t get bullied down low, John uses a mix of length and timing in order to block shots at a good rate. He is a weaker perimeter defender but it’s more so because of inexperience rather than his weight. Butler is a great mismatch for a lot of teams because he can shoot over guards with ease and his speed at his weight makes him too shifty for centers. During the draft combine he held his own against the heaviest player in the draft, Kofi Cockburn, and actually gave him a lot of trouble because of his length and unexpected grit for a player at his weight. I can see many teams falling in love with him and taking him in the first round so I doubt that he will slip despite organizations having major issues with his weight.

Projection

Draft range: [ 20 - 45 ]

Comp: [ VERY UNIQUE PLAYER ]

Strengths: Size and Set Shot Weaknesses: Creation and Strength

High Side Comp: Porzingis-lite Low Side Comp: No Comp

Ideal Fit: Developmental Big

Draft Range: 45-Undrafted

Result: UDFA- Unsigned

Athleticism: 4/10 Size: 5/5 Defense: 6/10 Strength: 1/5 Quickness: 5/10 Creation: 2/5 Jumpshot: 8/10 Finishing: 2/5 NBA Ready: 2/5 Ball Handling: 3/10 Passing: 2/10 Intangibles: 2/5 Potential: 7/10 TOTAL: 49= Late Second

Great on Defense 7'1 can shoot can be a 3 d on small forwards He can dribble help defense is great his second jump is so quick for his size Beautiful shot i think he is strong for his size

I think this guy can be one of the best defenders in the NBA when he puts on muscle. He can guard all 5 postions later in his career right now he can guard 1-4. He can put pressure on the permiter, weakside stays with guards

This guy defense is great let him grow up and gain muscle has a chance of being a great player

Strengths:

• Quite the unicorn, can really knock it down from range

• Looks to be a nice shot blocker

• Shows some nice defensive upside, is quite quick on his feet and has great timing on blocks

• Super young with a lot of potential

• Very mobile for a guy his size

Flaws:

• Has absolutely zero interior game and gets bodied inside

• He's a twig, only weighs 190 pounds at 7'1

• I have no confidence that he could guard college bigs let alone NBA bigs

• God awful free throw shooter, 44% is abysmal