PHILADELPHIA -- About the only thing that went wrong for the Chicago Bulls' Jimmy Butler in Thursday night's 102-90 win over the Philadelphia 76ers came after a celebration with teammate Bobby Portis.

After Portis knocked down a jumper right before the third-quarter buzzer sounded, the excitable second-year forward saw Butler holding his hand up to receive a high-five. Portis walked toward Butler, cocked his right arm back a little and unleashed a high-five that created a look of both pain and anger on Butler's face. The All-Star swingman walked toward the bench, said something to Portis, then sat toward the end of bench and stared at his fingers.

As Butler recounted the highlights from his triple-double (19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists), he also delivered a message to Portis, who was standing in front of a nearby locker.

"I know if Bobby smacks my hand as hard as he did again," Butler said with a smile, "we're going to go toe-to-toe."

With the Bulls shorthanded, Jimmy Butler had a triple-double and got 22 points (and a more reasonable high-five) from Nikola Mirotic. Bill Streicher/USA Today Sports

The laughs were easier to come by after the Bulls picked up a much-needed victory, keeping them in the seventh position in the Eastern Conference playoff race. After a slow and sloppy first half, Butler helped right the ship for a team playing without Rajon Rondo (wrist) and Dwyane Wade (elbow).

"Jimmy, he's doing such a good job this year of taking what the defense gives him," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. "He could have very easily had 15 or 16 assists tonight. He got our guys some wide-open shots they just didn't knock down. It's been really impressive to see the growth of Jimmy with the ball in his hands."

Butler knew he had to get the rest of his teammates involved without Rondo and Wade playing alongside him. And his teammates, specifically Niko Mirotic, knew that they had to pick up the slack to help Butler. Mirotic scored a team-high 22 points, delivering a 3-pointer in the final minutes that gave Butler his 10th assist.

CHICAGO BULLS Check out the team site for more game coverage PHILADELPHIA 76ers Check out the team site for more game coverage

"I knew that Jimmy needed some help today," Mirotic said. "And I told him before the game, 'Jimmy, don't worry, I'm going to be your wingman tonight. Don't worry. Let's make it work.'"

Second-year point guard Jerian Grant filled in nicely for Rondo, scoring 15 points, while Portis had one of his better games of the year with 14 points of his own. He couldn't help but smile as he recounted the reaction to his latest hard high-five.

"I kind of had flashbacks from last season," Portis said, noting this isn't the first time his celebrations have become a viral hit. "I'm pretty sure there's a video live streaming somewhere. It's probably going crazy."

When told that his latest celebration with Butler had indeed become viewed by a lot of fans, Portis had fun with the notoriety.

"I'm a guy that plays with a lot of emotion, plays with a lot of grit," Portis said. "I really wasn't trying to smack him hard, that's just -- when I play basketball I'm not even on the planet. I'm in another world. I was locked in, I hit his hand hard, and after I sat down and thought about it I'm like, 'Damn, I did hit his hand pretty hard.' He kind of joked around with me."

It was easier for Butler to joke after the win, but don't expect him to let Portis get away with it again.

"I told Bobby to stop doing that," Butler said. "It's good that he's so fired up and has all that energy. Just don't smack my hand like that."