Want more ways to catch up on the latest in Bay Area sports? Sign up for the Section 415 email newsletter here and subscribe to the Section 415 podcast wherever you listen.
The Warriors’ plans are starting to crystallize following Jimmy Butler’s season-ending injury, and they involve holding onto the six-time All-Star.
Sources familiar with Golden State’s direction indicate the team is committed to building around Steph Curry and Butler, when he returns from surgery to repair his torn ACL. There will be inevitable chatter about potentially packaging Butler and his $54.1 million salary in a win-now move, but the team doesn’t intend to move off the wing ahead of the NBA’s Feb 5 trade deadline.
High-ranking team decision-makers have indicated this to Butler, one source told The Standard, which tracks with general manager Mike Dunleavy’s public statements.
“What I envision for him is kind of giving us a boost next year the same way he did last year when he arrived,” Dunleavy said of Butler in his Tuesday press conference.
Today
3 days ago
Friday, Jan. 16
Butler, 36, would be the oldest NBA player in the past 20 years to come back from a torn ACL. There are scant examples of athletes his age, in any sport, recovering from that particular injury and performing at a high level. But Dunleavy believes Butler’s game — which often relies on ground-bound physicality, a high IQ on both ends of the court, tight footwork, savvy fakes and sharp passing — should age well.
Without Butler, and without a bold, unlikely trade for a star, the Warriors’ hopes of competing for a championship this season are dashed. Golden State is using the next two weeks leading up to the deadline to assess the current team, including Jonathan Kuminga, who has a standing trade request.
One team source suggested the Warriors will stand pat or make marginal trades. Kuminga remains a prime candidate to be moved, if a team makes the Warriors a compelling offer. De’Anthony Melton and Al Horford each have cheap player options next year and would both be appealing to contenders. The Warriors are using this stretch leading up to the deadline to sift through a myriad of options.
Circumstances change quickly in the NBA, but keeping Butler instead of aggressively shopping his contract — and attaching assets to it — before the deadline has merits.
Curry and Draymond Green, the organization’s pillars, are fond of the veteran. They’re also a proven trio. In games with Curry, Butler, and Green in the lineup, the Warriors are 40-17 — a 59-win pace.
Golden State had won 12 of its prior 16 games before Butler went down. Asked about how Butler’s injury should affect the franchise’s direction, Curry was mum.
Despite the lack of historical evidence, there could be reason for optimism that Butler can return from injury at a high level next season. Modern rehab programs have never been better, especially following knee surgeries. There’s a long road ahead for him, but Butler already vowed on Instagram that he’ll “be back before you know it.” Work ethic and toughness have never been questions for him.
It would also be difficult to trade Butler. Not many teams would sign up for a player making $54 million to not play this year and $57 million to potentially play the second half of next season. The Warriors would have to attach future draft capital to him, which they’ve been hesitant to do unless for a game-changing player in his prime. That kind of player, barring market dynamics changing significantly, either won’t become available or would likely command more than Butler’s salary as a centerpiece.
So the team’s stance at the moment is to wait until next year for Butler to reprise his role as Robin to Curry’s Batman. Maybe then, they’ll have the right pieces around them to play meaningful basketball together.