New York, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Jimmy Butler made his first All-Star team and helped keep the Chicago Bulls afloat without injured star Derrick Rose.
For his efforts, he was voted the NBA's Most Improved Player.
Butler on Thursday became the first Bulls player to win the award, finishing on top in a landslide vote in which he garnered 92 first-place votes -- 80 more than the second-highest vote-getter, Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz.
The 6-foot-7 shooting guard averaged career highs of 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 65 games for the Bulls, who are currently facing Cleveland in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Butler averaged the same number of minutes per game as he did last season -- 38.7 -- but saw significant spikes in most of his stats.
He received a total of 535 points from a nationwide media panel. Golden State's Draymond Green was second with 200 points and Gobert came in third with 189.