How Could Warriors Land Jimmy Butler?

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jonah Kubicek | Last updated Dec 6, 2024 3:46 PM ET

The Golden State Warriors, after topping the Western Conference standings just before Thanksgiving, have since fallen to 13-8 and fifth in the Western Conference. Steve Kerr and Stephen Curry have publically disagreed over the coach's deep 12 or 13-man lineups, and there is growing belief that the Warriors will flip their expiring contracts for a star in a trade.

Brandon Ingram's name has been included in recent mock trades, and the Warriors could unload expiring salary to make a deal work. With their soon-to-end contracts acting as a trade chip (coupled with draft picks), the Warriors' direction on the trade market is pretty clear, but a recently proposed mock trade sees them go in a different direction.

According to Sports Illustrated's Jake Elman, the Warriors could send Andrew Wiggins, Johnathan Kuminga, a first-round pick, and a pick swap to the Miami Heat for Jimmy Butler and Josh Richardson. This deal would leave Golden State $17.9 million above the hard cap, so the Warriors would also have to include additional players, likely centered around De'Anthony Melton.

All that aside, adding Butler to the Warriors would immediately give Stephen Curry a clear second option. Butler is averaging 18.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists this season while shooting well from all over the court, although Wiggins' 43 percent mark from 3-point range would be tough for the Warriors to give up.

At this point in the season, Wiggins has played his way out of trade consideration, and the Warriors would be hard-pressed to replace him with an older and less durable wing defender. There are ways for the Warriors to keep Wiggins in a possible deal for Butler, and having both of them defend on the perimeter would give the Warriors a boost before an attempted run at the Finals.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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