From 21 to 23 to 22, what story does Butler's three numbers hide?

Each star has their own iconic number, and the bigger the wrist, the more representative the number.

For example, Jordan's 23, O'Neill's 34, Bird's 33, Magic's 32, and so on and so forth.

If you happen to change numbers halfway, chances are you'll even have two iconic numbers, like Kobe's 8 and 24, and James' 23 and 6.

Of the many stories about jersey numbers, Butler is the most special. After entering the NBA, his numbers were 21, 23 and 22.

The three numbers are very close, but they have different stories.

So the question is, why does Butler change numbers so frequently? And it's an extremely subtle change.

Back in high school, Butler wore the number 1 jersey.

It's not hard to understand, given Butler is a native of Houston, and when he was still in high school, Houston was in the prime of Yao Ming and Maddie. As a kid who loves basketball, it's normal to consider Maddie his idol.

After entering Marquette University, Butler changed to the number 33 shirt.

Butler explained it this way: "Because my best friend's number is number 33, he is my brother, and he has done many, many things for my family. His mom's favorite star was Larry Bird, so I wore the number 33 shirt. ”

Whether it's No. 1 or No. 33, Butler is difficult to continue after entering the league.

No. 1 already belonged to Rose, which was a new hope for the Bulls at the time.

The number 33 has been hung high by the United Center, and this number belongs to Pippen, the hero of the Bulls' 6th crown.

Butler chose the No. 21 jersey for the reason he gave it: "When I was in Chicago, I chose the No. 21 jersey because I was drafted at the age of 21. And I played in college with a guy named Joe Foles, and he wore number 21, and I wouldn't be in the NBA without him. ”

The number 21 means a lot to Butler.

As a finalist in the first round, he didn't have a unique physical advantage and didn't get preferential treatment from coaches on the team. If he wants to get everything, he has to pay countless blood, sweat and tears.

Butler's efforts paid off.

During his time with the Bulls, he went from a hairy boy averaging 8.5 minutes per game to the league's most improved player and a three-time All-Star. And after Ross was seriously injured, he carried the banner of the Bulls.

In the summer of 2017, Butler moved to the Timberwolves.

When he arrived in Minnesota, he knew one thing was that he could no longer wear the number 21 shirt. Because although this number has not yet been retired, we all know that the number 21 belongs to the team totem Garnett.

Interestingly, in addition to Butler, Beverley also encountered this conundrum many years to come.

So Butler changed to No. 23, because of the contradictions between Garnett and Timberwolves management, Butler did not explain the reason in front of the camera, he explained: "I wore No. 23 with the Timberwolves because I signed AJ at the time, I don't compare myself to Jordan, but Jordan wore No. 23 when he was in Chicago, and I also came out of Chicago, so I wanted to choose No. 23." ”

Butler's Timberwolves career wasn't ideal.

He did lead the Timberwolves back to the playoffs after 14 years, but he was an "outsider" after all.

But when there was a conflict within the team, the management still sided with their own choice of Downs, and Butler left a message: "You guys need me so much!" and left Minnesota for Philadelphia.

After coming to Philadelphia, Butler had no intention of trading back for No. 21, and he had no way to trade back No. 21.

Because the number belonged to Embiid, he continued to wear the number 23 shirt.

A year later, Butler and Embiid watched as Leonard's killer stumbled into the basket.

Faced with the Heat's invitation, Butler once again ushered in a new chapter.

And Butler ushered in not only the most brilliant chapter of his career in Miami, but also the difficulty of choosing numbers.

As we all know, the Heat retired Jordan's No. 23 jersey, Jordan never played for Miami, and Riley retired No. 23 out of respect, which is a famous joke in the NBA.

So Butler had to change the number again, and he chose the number 22, which he said: "The number 21 represents my bull days, and I will not wear the number 21 again." I used to wear No. 23 with the Timberwolves and 76ers, but since the Heat retired Jordan's No. 23 jersey, I had to wear No. 22. ”

Butler also gave a small reason: "I wear No. 22 because I respect my former teammate Gibson. ”

It is worth mentioning that according to Butler himself, when he came to Miami, Riley told him that he could wear the Heat's No. 23 jersey, but he refused.

You know, Riley's promise was never even received by James.

When James brought his talent to the South Coast with the glow of a two-time MVP, he had to choose the No. 6 jersey sadly and called for the league to retire the No. 23 jersey. After receiving no response, James did not return to the No. 23 jersey until he returned to Cleveland.

If the No. 21 jersey witnessed Butler's youthfulness, the No. 23 shirt witnessed Butler's frivolity, then the No. 22 shirt witnessed Butler's maturity.

In his first season with the Heat, Butler led the team back to the Finals after six years.

After two years, he led the Heat to the first place in the regular season, but unfortunately lost to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.

During the season, Butler reached the peak of his career.

Lost the All-Star and made the playoffs only by the playoffs.

So what?

Butler led the Heat to a 4-1 first-round victory over the Bucks to stage the sixth Black Eight miracle in history; He then eliminated the Knicks 4-2 again; Facing old rivals the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Heat came up to a 3-0 lead, and despite being tied by the opponents at one point, Butler and the Heat put an end to a turnaround in the best-of-seven battle.

Today, Butler is preparing for the Finals.

Despite being unfavorable, Butler has performed miracles countless times, and who can guarantee that he will not break people's perceptions again?

The day before the Finals kicked off, Butler put it this way: "When I first entered the league, the Heat were always beating the Bulls because they had the Big Three. Then I met Wade again, and it was really hard not to love him, and I was going to take off my hat to him. After going around in circles, I'm on the Heat, and this will be the last jersey I wear! ”

There is no doubt that Butler's words are true, and we don't even need to question his relationship with the Heat.

And we can't ignore the fact that Butler is 33 years old this year, he will turn 34 in 3 months, and he is also at the age to think about life after retirement.

Luckily, as Butler himself said, after going around in circles, he didn't want to change teams again, and Miami was his destination.

And his rugged and complicated shirt number story should not have a new chapter.