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Since we last played Butler, they unfortunately have not sustained the potential they showed earlier this season after wins against Virginia, South Carolina, and Providence.
Injuries in the backcourt have been significant. In November, starting point guard Jalen Jackson was declared out for the season with an ankle injury. His backup, freshman Azavier Robinson, is now also out with a wrist injury and has no timetable for return.
With both out, combo guard Finley Bizjack has become the team’s de facto point guard, while wing Jamie Kaiser starts at the 2, power wing Efeosa Oliogu-Elabor at the 3, and the regular frontcourt of Ajayi with a Traore/Jones combo at center rounds out the lineup.
With Bizjack at the point and Robinson and Jackson unavailable, Butler’s offense tends to look more deliberate but less dynamic. Bizjack provides steadiness and ball security, but the attack lacks Robinson’s shot creation and downhill pressure, causing it to bog down into half-court possessions that rely heavily on jump shooting. Overall, the spacing is adequate, but the offense struggles to consistently bend the defense or generate easy paint touches, leading to longer scoring droughts.
Defensively, Butler’s new-look lineup is structurally sound but athletically limited. Kaiser and Oliogu-Elabor are positionally solid and compete hard, but Butler lacks point-of-attack disruption and quick-twitch length on the wing, making it more difficult to contain dribble penetration. As a result, the defense often holds up early in possessions but breaks down late, especially against guards and wings who can create off the bounce.
Bottom line, Butler has become a two-man offensive operation centered around Bizjack and Ajayi, but lacks the healthy surrounding talent needed to elevate the team to a higher level.
If you want a more in-depth look at certain players, here's a link to my original scouting report: https://the-boneyard.com/threads/butler-scouting-report.210932/
