After Shams Charania reported that the Miami Heat are open to a Jimmy Butler trade and that the Warriors, Mavericks, or Rockets are his preferred destinations, the NBA trade machine has officially been fired up. Butler has knocked on the door of an NBA championship multiple times, and pairing him with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green could help him finally grab a ring. However, the Jimmy Butler contract complicates things. Additionally, Andrew Wiggins is proving to be an incredibly valuable piece once again. This combination makes the Jimmy Butler to Warriors trade a bad idea for Golden State.
Why the Warriors Shouldn’t Trade for Jimmy Butler
Jimmy Butler Trade News
When Shams reported that the Heat were willing to trade Butler, nobody was surprised. Butler has been unable to agree on an extension with the Heat. He is expected to explore free agency this offseason. Because of that, the Heat may be willing to part with their star early to get something back rather than lose him in the offseason for nothing.
The difficulty with trading Butler is that because he is looking to be traded to a contender, the Heat would likely not be getting another star in return. The Heat will, almost without a doubt, get worse this season by trading Butler.
Heat are now “open” to trading Jimmy Butler, per @ShamsCharania
Jimmy Buckets era in Miami really might be over soon…
Full story: https://t.co/pLDALYwVUs pic.twitter.com/8MIyWE02Pw
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 10, 2024
Jimmy Butler to Warriors Possibilities
The Warriors are one of the three teams that have reportedly been linked as a Jimmy Butler trade destination. Although putting Butler on the Warriors sounds awesome in theory, there are multiple reasons why the Warriors shouldn’t make this trade.
First of all, is Butler’s age and fit. Butler is 35 years old and is definitely past his prime. In fact, this year is the first time in five seasons that he is scoring less than 20 points a game. Butler is also 35 years old and has a history of injuries.
He hasn’t played more than 70 games since the 2016-17 season. The Warriors’ two best players are already on the wrong side of their prime. They are also prone to missing spurts with injuries themselves. Adding Butler to the mix would certainly give them the second star they’ve been trying to pair Curry with. However, the Warriors likely wouldn’t be getting a healthy All-NBA level star in Butler.
Andrew Wiggins’ Play Makes Him Harder to Part With
The hardest part of making a Jimmy Butler to Warriors trade work is that because of Butler’s contract, the Warriors wouldn’t almost need to include Wiggins or Draymond in the trade. The Warriors aren’t going to trade Draymond, so Wiggins would be the only realistic option.
Andrew Wiggins’ stats this season have been great. He is scoring 17.1 points a game on 42.7% shooting from three, up from 13.2 points and 35.8% last season. Wiggins is back to playing incredible two-way basketball, he is locking down people on defense and scoring and spreading the floor on offense.
Getting rid of Wiggins to get Butler isn’t enough of an upgrade. Wiggins is younger, more durable, and can shoot better from distance. Butler does have a track record of playoff heroics that is enticing. However, due to the size of his contract, the Warriors would be giving up Wiggins as well as depth to even get him. So even though a Jimmy Butler trade may be a sexy move for the Warriors, they should look elsewhere in the trade market.
The post Why this West Contender Shouldn’t Trade for Jimmy Butler appeared first on Last Word On Basketball.