Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler recently handed high praise to Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Isaac Okoro.
“I was talking to U.D. (Udonis Haslem) at the end of the game and we agreed the kid is going to be really good,” Butler said of Okoro. “He plays within the game. He takes all of the right shots. He gets stops and rebounds. He is always passing the ball to the open guy. I really like his game.
“Obviously, he is matched up against me and he plays incredibly hard. He is going to be in this league for a long time and he is going to make a lot of money in this league, too. … His potential is out of this world. Hopefully, he is 10 times better than I am. If he keeps working, the sky is the limit.”
Okoro reacted to the high praise with some major gratitude.
Okoro said he heard what Jimmy Butler said about him the other night and considers it a "blessing" to hear it from one of the best players at their position.
He hopes he can be ten times the player Butler is one day.
— Evan Dammarell (@AmNotEvan) April 7, 2021
Okoro, 20, was the No. 5 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
The prized rookie believes he should have been the No. 1 pick in the draft. The franchise sees the youngster as an untouchable piece on its roster.
On the season, Okoro is putting up 8.1 points, 2.8 boards and 1.7 assists in 31.9 minutes per game. He’s started in 45 games for the Cavaliers this year.
Although Okoro is not putting up big numbers on the stat sheet, he’s making his presence known in a variety of other ways. The Auburn University product is taking on defensive assignments against some of the league’s best players.
The Cavs hold a 18-32 record this season.
