Having reported at the start of the month that the Warriors were unlikely to pursue Heat star Jimmy Butler, Anthony Slater of Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic reiterate that there was “zero push” at any level of the organization to go after Butler at that time due to concerns about the price and his fit.
However, Slater and Thompson confirm that Golden State has some renewed interest in the 35-year-old now that Miami’s asking price has dropped, though they caution that team sources have downplayed the Warriors’ involvement in the Butler sweepstakes.
The drama Butler has caused in Miami is “not lost on this locker room” in Golden State, according to The Athletic’s reporters, who say that Bulls guard Zach LaVine might be of more interest to the Warriors if the front office decides to make a run at a maximum-salary player.
LaVine is several years younger than Butler and his cap hit is a few million dollars lower. There’s also a sense that he’d be a good culture fit and a belief that the Warriors need a second legitimate scoring threat to complement Stephen Curry, Slater and Thompson write.
On the other hand, LaVine’s longer-term contract and history of health issues make him a risk, and the Warriors have concerns about what they’d have to give up to match salaries for a player like LaVine or Butler. Andrew Wiggins ($26.3MM), an important two-way contributor, would likely have to be involved, and potential trade chips on expiring contracts like Gary Payton II ($9.1MM) and Kevon Looney ($8MM) have been valuable locker-room presences, per The Athletic.
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- Golden State is willing to move a protected form of its 2025 first-round pick in the right deal, according to Slater and Thompson, who hear from league sources that the Warriors aren’t enamored with the prospects expected to be on the board in the second half of the first round. Moving a lottery-protected 2025 first-rounder would allow Golden State to either convey the pick in June and then dangle future first-rounders (starting with 2026) during the offseason or – if the ’25 pick lands in the top 14 – give the front office a valuable asset in a top-heavy draft to use or trade this summer.
- Although it’s not their top priority, the Warriors are mulling the idea of acquiring a stretch center, The Athletic’s duo says. Bulls center Nikola Vucevic is viewed as a “secondary” target, with varying opinions within the organization about how much he’d help. For what it’s worth, Vucevic considers Golden State a desirable landing spot if Chicago trades him, per Slater and Thompson.
- Ducking out of luxury tax territory this season isn’t mandatory, with the Warriors prioritizing present and future on-court improvements, team sources tell The Athletic. If the club ends up getting out of the tax as a result of a trade, it would be viewed as an “added benefit.” Golden State is currently operating nearly $6MM over the tax line.
Perfect fit if this happens.
Yeah, maybe they’ll make the play in.
All of these Warriors stories. I get it, they used to be good, but now they’re like a more boring version of the Pistons.
Butler would just make them more fun to laugh at.
Bulls would need to take Wiggins if the warriors went for LaVine. So it wouldn’t be much of a need for the bulls.
Wiggins is an extremely tradeable asset though – all contenders are always looking for wings. Think bigger arc
People tend to forget how good Wiggins is. For whatever reason.
I guess the reason is that he is really good, but not consistently good. He was superb during the last GSW ring, then a non-factor last year. He’s been away from the team for personal reasons for extended periods of time… Trading for Wiggins is a risk because you don’t know which version you are getting.
Otogar – Wiggins will never be “great”, but, outside of (a bad) last season, he’s been as available and performed as consistently and predictably as any player in the NBA.
Wiggins has been away from his team for only 1 extended period, which was in 2022-23. The second incident family-related incident, last season, was for 3 games only.
You won’t find a more consistent stat-line than this one:
link to espn.com
IF the Warriors trade Wiggins it HAS to be for an elite 2 way wing. Any defender thats worse than Wiggins would make that team sink even deeper.
Brabo, I agree. If Wiggins is traded for LaVine, the Warriors also need to trade for another very good 2-way wing.
If I’m Draymond Green, I’m finding a way to stay injured all the way through the trade deadline.
Under the new CBA, winning requires fair value for every major contract. You might get away with $10M of total overpay but $25M can kill you. So:
DON’T: acquire bad contracts.
DO: keep good contracts
1) Lavine isn’t worth $46M/yr because of defense & availability. ~$32M is right.
2) Draymond not worth $26M in 2025-26, and, esp in 2026-27. ~$12M is right.
3) Wiggins’ current contract pays him what’s he’s for the next 3 years: ~$27M.
– Draymond’s & Lavine’s bad contracts together are almost $30M in overpay.
– Trading Draymond’s bad contract for Lavine’s keeps GSW at the same level of overpay, but:
1) keeps Wiggins and his good contract (possibly for use in another trade)
2) upgrades our offense
3) makes us younger
we don’t want green for lavine end of story
Bulls certainly want nothing to do with Draymond Green.
The only team trading for Draymond Green is a contender who needs one tough guy defensive guy to get them over the top. Maybe the Lakers feel that way? I don’t know.
But it definitely wouldn’t be a rebuilding team or a team down on their luck right now.
Gary, yet another flawless analysis!
And we don’t want Butler under any conditions…….
GS should trade Curry for Klay Thompson. That guy had 37pts in one quarter! Then trade Green for Bradley Beal. Wiggans is a born-leader who can totally can lead GS, to Flaggdom.
That you Davey?
Yes, he did have 37 points in one qtr, but over the next two games he took 37 shots and made five.