The Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler have been fierce rivals over the years. Stephen Curry and Butler have also had countless clashes in the league. These two names are among the best players in the league, and this has been the case for several years. But there has seldom been an opportunity to see Butler and Curry team up for an NBA franchise. Perhaps that opportunity can open itself in the next offseason. Over the years, the Dubs have been a tight-knit group along with Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson. Moreover, there was another great name among them for a while, and that was Kevin Durant.
These four superstars helped the Warriors become a modern-day Dynasty. But after winning two championships with the Dubs, KD left the franchise. On the other hand, the trio of Green, Curry, and Thompson has been a constant in helping the Dubs win four titles in a span of eight years. However, the way things ended in the 2023-2024 season for the GSW, there is a good chance that the Dubs might trade Klay Thompson. Is it going to be Jimmy Butler in exchange for Klay Thompson?
Jimmy Butler Has Been A Proposed Trade Target For The Warriors
There have been recent reports suggesting that all is not well on the Miami Heat front. Pat Riley, the President of the franchise, has openly criticized the star player of his team. During the first round of the playoffs, Jimmy Butler was trash talking from the bench and that didn’t impress Riley. Now, there are doubts and speculations going on surrounding Butler’s future with the Heat as he is eligible for extension. On the other hand, everybody in the NBA knows that the Golden State Warriors are looking for an additional star who can fit perfectly alongside Steph Curry. Is it going to be Butler?
Recently, on the latest episode of the podcast Warriors Plus Minus, Anthony Slater of The Athletic, mentioned that the Miami Heat star is a potential target for the Dubs in the offseason. Moreover, Slater added that talking about the present stage of Butler’s career, it seems switching to the Warriors team would be a culture fit. The Athletic reporter explained that like Jimmy, the Warriors are also trying to “Chase down this era.” But he added that the move would be very risky. First of all, the Dubs don’t have a sustainable payroll, and their cap space is a real problem. On the other hand, Jimmy’s age and contract along with injury history makes the move risky.
Butler’s A Warriors Kind Of A Guy
Jimmy Butler is 34 years old. Next season, he will make $48.8 million. Moreover, for the 2024-2025 season, Butler has a player option of $52.4 million. He has not played more than 65 games in a regular season since the 2016-2017 edition. During the first-round series this year against the Boston Celtics, Butler could not play a single game, and the Heat lost eventually. The series was over in five games. Previously, Jimmy suffered from an MCL sprain during the Play-in tournament.
Nevertheless, with Butler, the Warriors won’t have to worry about a second star right next to Steph Curry. After all, he led the Miami Heat to two NBA Finals in the last five years. Butler is a 6’7 forward who is pretty good at defense as well. Moreover, he is pretty hard-edged at defense. Tim Kawakami, a colleague of Anthony Slater, labeled the Heat star as a “Dubs kind of a player.”
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