The Golden State Warriors will go into next season with Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green as the foundational three pieces on the roster. But it's going to be important for Warriors fans to accept that Butler's best days are behind him already.
What this is not meant to be is a disrespectful dig at Jimmy. Obviously, he still brings a lot of value at both ends of the floor. Butler is a fantastic defender both on an individual and team level, and his ability to uplift an offense speaks for itself. He's constantly playing with physicality and driving to the rim to draw fouls and put points on the board.
We know that Butler is still going to be an uplifting presence for Golden State, and he'll likely be among the biggest reasons they win a lot of games next season. But I think when it comes to the mythical "playoff Jimmy," it's just going to be best if the Warriors fanbase keeps its collective expectations in check.
When NBA fans hear that phrase and think of Butler's performance in the playoffs, they're likely going to think of two separate things: his outputs in the 2020 and 2023 playoffs. In both of those postseasons, Jimmy put the Miami Heat on his back and carried them to NBA Finals appearances.
"Playoff Jimmy" is probably mostly in the past
Both were herculean efforts that led to him earning an even higher reputation than he had before of putting on a show when the lights are brightest. And to be clear, the praise he has gotten for these kind of legendary performances has always been warranted.
But at the same time, I just think Warriors fans need to take something of a look in the mirror if they expect Butler to be able to replicate those kind of otherworldly performances again next year. Perhaps Jimmy will have another classic playoff game or two, but I just don't think it's realistic to expect him to dominate for an entire postseason and be able to drag a team to the Finals once again.
Jimmy Butler will continue to be a highly effective player for the Warriors, and yes, at times probably even be their best player if Curry is out or having an uncharacteristic bad night. But thinking that he will go nuclear in the postseason and transform Golden State into an unstoppable force simply isn't going to happen.
Butler is no longer at the peak of his powers. The sooner we can recognize that, the sooner we can more properly set expectations for next season in The Bay.