Is there a viable Jimmy Butler trade deal to join Steph Curry’s Warriors following Miami Heat exit saga?
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Jimmy Butler has now been known to want to get traded from the Miami Heat. Pat Riley initially put on a brave front, insisting that the organization would not trade him away. However, with Butler’s 7-game suspension now official, there will be little to no scope for them to kiss and make up.
Recent reports suggest that both the Milwaukee Bucks and the Memphis Grizzlies are out of the sweepstakes. However, with Butler arguably still in his prime, he could definitely elevate a few lower-tier, as well as rising teams.
A situation like the Houston Rockets‘, for example, has often been seen as a possible fit. The Lakers, as with most All-Star caliber players, are rumored to have made enquiries. Even the Phoenix Suns have been linked to the pursuit by ESPN, though the fit doesn’t quite make sense on paper.
However, one team currently in the play-in picture and in free fall – Stephen Curry’s Warriors – should be seen as leading contenders to lead a change. The Dubs have failed to mount a playoff threat since landing Curry his 4th championship in 2022. Their much-maligned ‘Two Timelines’ strategy lies in the doldrums.
Younger players like Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga just aren’t capable of hanging with the class of the NBA, dominated by all-action swingmen with diverse skillsets. They would need bolstering on the wing, and Butler would be a readymade solution.
How would a realistic offer from the Warriors to the Miami Heat for the 2-time NBA finalist look? Let’s try to envision it.
A Godfather Golden State Warriors offer for Jimmy Butler
The Dubs could theoretically go all-in on making this trade. However, luckily for them, the market for a player in a contract year is definitely affected a lot by this. So most NBA teams aren’t making ‘Godfather’ offers for the charismatic 34-year-old.
The Warriors are a 1st apron team with a spending of $178,132,000 in 2024-25. This means that they cannot take back more money than they send in a trade. Jimmy Butler’s $48.8 million salary also has a 15% trade kicker, though he could theoretically waive it.
However, the Heat themselves are a 1st-apron team with a wage bill of $186.35 million. This means that the Warriors would have to send out a minimum of $48.8 million in yearly wages. Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga’s combined 4th year rookie scale wages add up to less than 30% of that.
They would almost certainly have to send one of Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green to make it work. While Draymond has a cap hit of $24.1 million, Wiggins is at $26.3 million for 2024-25. This would leave them roughly around a Kyle Anderson/Gary Payton II contract short of a matched-money trade.
Losing either of the 2 above players would leave a gaping hole in a Warriors team already staking 2 key youngsters in the aforementioned deal. This is the key sticking point that has prevented the Warriors thus far from making an offer to Pat Riley and co. But with Draymond Green declining substantially as a player, perhaps the time has come for Mike Dunleavy to wield the axe on the Warriors legend?
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Amulya Shekhar
(14 Articles Published)