In the long, proud history of the Chicago Bulls, not even Michael Jordan or Scottie Pippen could say they did what Jimmy Butler did Thursday.
Butler won the NBA Most Improved Player Award in a landslide, becoming the first Bulls player to earn the honor. The fourth-year swingman took 92 of a possible 129 first-place votes, more than doubling the vote-point total of the second-place finisher, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green.
Butler averaged career highs with 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.75 steals per game this season while playing a league-high 38.7 minutes per game. Only six players got to the free throw line more frequently than Butler, who shot 83.4 percent from the charity stripe.
The top 10 vote-getters and their point tallies appear below (first-place votes in parentheses).
Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls: 535 (92)
Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors: 200 (11)
Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz: 189 (12)
Hassan Whiteside, Miami Heat: 88 (5)
Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors: 42 (2)
Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans: 27 (4)
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks: 22 (1)
Donatas Montiejunas, Houston Rockets: 7
Dennis Schroder, Atlanta Hawks: 6
(t-10th) DeMarre Carroll, Atlanta Hawks: 5 (1)
(t-10th) Tyler Zeller, Boston Celtics: 5 (1)
Thumbnail photo via Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY Sports Images
