Jimmy Butler got a front row seat to RJ Barrett’s 40-piece on Friday night. Miami might’ve gotten the win, but Maple Mamba did all he could to keep the Knicks afloat, dropping a career-high 46 points.
After the game, Butler talked about Barrett’s magnificent scoring display. And the six-time All-Star had some high praise for the 21-year-old out of Duke.
“I don’t think anybody is surprised or should be surprised,” Butler said. “He’s gonna definitely be playing in this league for a long time and he’s going to be the face of the Knicks.”
Jimmy Butler talks about RJ Barrett’s career-high performance tonight:
“I don’t think anybody is surprised or should be surprised. He’s gonna definitely be playing in this league for a long time and he’s going to be the face of the Knicks” pic.twitter.com/05Ke3xyf6V
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 26, 2022
Barrett has steadily improved every season since the Knicks selected him third overall in the 2019 NBA draft. New York‘s been searching for a homegrown face since the days of Patrick Ewing.
RJ finished the night with 46 points, nine rebounds and two assists on 13-22 from the field. On the year, Barrett’s averaging a 18.6 points, 5.7 boards and 2.6 dimes across 49 appearances.
In what’s been a disappointing season to say the least in the Garden, Barrett has been a lone bright spot. But unfortunately, his red hot play hasn’t put more W’s in the win column.
This much is clear: Knicks must prioritize building around RJ Barrett (via @_Verts ) https://t.co/ngfNWFL90e pic.twitter.com/DN5UScfmkV
— SNY (@SNYtv) February 26, 2022
The New York Knicks currently sit at 12th in the Eastern Conference; which is 3.5 games behind Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks for the final play-in spot.
With just 22 games to go in the regular season, New York needs others to join Barrett as they look to build off last season’s 41-31 record which saw the Knicks in the playoffs for the first time since 2012.
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