NBA: Top 5 highest-scoring games of Jimmy Butler's career

Jimmy Butler won the Most Improved Player of the Year award in 2015 after averaging 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game over the 2014-15 season.

In the 2017 off-season, Butler was traded by the Bulls to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Kris Dunn and Zach LaVine. He spent the entire 2017-18 season with the Timberwolves, playing under his former coach in Chicago, Tom Thibodeau. The T-Wolves made it to the post-season and lost in the first round of playoffs to the Houston Rockets.

Butler was recently traded to the Philadelphia 76ers after he requested the franchise for a trade. The 76ers are 8-2 since they acquired him and are currently at the third spot in Eastern Conference.

Let us take a look at four of Butler's highest-scoring games so far in the NBA.

#5 42 at Toronto Raptors, 3 January 2016

Butler's 42 points helped the Bulls rally back to beat the Raptors

Stat line: 42 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and a block on 65.2% shooting

The Chicago Bulls' three-game winning streak started with their win against the Toronto Raptors at home. A few days later, the Bulls were on the road to take on the Raptors at the Air Canada Centre.

Butler scored a game-high 42 points to take the Bulls home.

He started the game with a turnover but quickly made up for it with an alley-oop layup off an Hinrich assist. However, that was his only bucket in the first half and the Bulls were down 60-48 at the half-time.

Butler took over in the third quarter and scored 21 points to cut the Bulls' deficit to just six at the end of three quarters.

It was all Butler in the fourth quarter as he exploded for 19 points, including a game-winning free-throw. The 4-time All-Star finished the night with 42 points on 15-for-23 shooting. He was also efficient from the free-throw line and went 10-for-11.

Even though DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry had a great night themselves, Butler took the Bulls home single-handedly with 40 points in the second half.

#4 43 vs Detroit Pistons, 18 December 2015

Jimmy Butler's 43 points not enough to get the win for the Bulls. Credit: CBS Chicago

Stat line: 43 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks on 48.3% shooting

The Bulls started the season with a winning record and were 14-9 when they hosted the Detroit Pistons for a game at the United Center. Butler, who was brilliant in the game against the Memphis Grizzlies, was once again the Bulls' go-to man as he scored 43 points.

However, the Bulls could not get the win in this four OT thriller.

With 2:50 left in the first quarter, Butler had an alley-oop dunk to cut the Pistons' lead to one-point. The Pistons went into halftime with a 55-52 lead. After the end of three quarters, Butler only had 14 points, but the Bulls were up by 3 points.

Butler started the fourth quarter with a driving layup off an assist from Noah, to extend the Bulls' lead to five points. However, the Pistons would fight back and send the game into overtime.

The game needed as many as four overtimes to decide the winner, and Butler had 15 points in the fourth overtime. Unfortunately for him though, the Bulls lost the game after Butler missed a potential game-tying three-pointer, 147-144.

#3 52 vs Charlotte Hornets, 2 January 2017

Jimmy Butler scored 52 points to defeat the Charlotte Hornets. Credit: SLAM

Stat line: 52 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals and a block on 62.5% shooting

Jimmy Butler had a great game against the Milwaukee Bucks and scored 26 points but Giannis Antetokounmpo answered back with 35 and the Bulls got blown away. Two nights later, the Bulls hosted the Charlotte Hornets for a regular season matchup and Butler exploded for 52 points in the contest.

Butler started the proceedings with a step-back jumper that went in, and then followed it up with a mid-range jumper over Roy Hibbert. With 4:59 remaining in the first quarter, Butler pulled up from elbow region to give the Bulls a three-point lead.

Butler shot a red-hot 15-for-24 from the field, with a field-goal percentage of 62.5. He was fouled on several occasions and went 21-for-22 from the free-throw line.

Butler finished the game with 52 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists and helped the Bulls defeat the Hornets, 118-111.

#2 53 at Philadelphia 76ers, 14 January 2016

Jimmy Butler led the Bulls home with career-high 53 points. Credit: Philadelphia Magazine

Stat line: 53 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals on 50.0% shooting

Two nights after scoring a game-high 30 points in a loss against the Milwaukee Bucks, Jimmy Butler was once again the center of attention as he scored a career-high 53 points at the Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia.

Butler started the game hot and scored 12 points in the first quarter, but the Sixers were leading 34-22 after the end of it. In the second quarter, with less than a minute remaining, Butler knocked down a step-back mid-range jumper to end up with 25 points at halftime.

In the third quarter, Butler again showed up and scored 11 points to cut the deficit to just two points after the end of three quarters. He then followed it up with a 15-point fourth quarter to register his first 50-point game in the NBA.

The Bulls won the game in overtime, 115-111.

#1 56 against the Milwaukee Bucks, 24th April 2023

Milwaukee Bucks v Miami Heat - Game Four

Stat line: 56 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists with only 1 turnover on 67.9% shooting

During the first round of the 2022-23 NBA Playoffs, Miami Heat (8th seed in the East) were trying to pull an upset over the Milwaukee Bucks (1st seed in the East). With the Bucks’ Superstar forward, Giannis Antetokounmpo, injured in Game 1 and being out for Games 2 & 3, the chance of an upset was still up in the air.

Jimmy Butler was coming off a 30-point performance in Game 3, and the Heat were leading the series 2-1 going into Game 4. The Heat Superstar explodes for a career-high playoff performance with 56 points.

The Miami Heat, despite Jimmy’s best efforts, were down 101-89 at the 6:09 minute mark in the 4th Quarter. To everyone’s surprise, the Heat went on a 30-13 run to end the game. The final score was 114-119, as the Heat secured a 3-1 lead against the Bucks.