Grade the Trade pitch: Warriors land Jimmy Butler in scorching blockbuster deal

Should the Warriors make this trade?

The first barrier to a trade is for both sides to be interested, and that is easily cleared here; the Warriors want a second star and have inquired about Butler before, and the Heat have enough of a reason to listen. This deal is, if nothing else, a reasonable one to discuss.

Is it the right one for the Warriors? Butler would fit the bill of a second star for the Dubs, a guy who has been in the back-half of the Top 10 players in the league for some time. He received MVP votes as recently as two seasons ago and is extremely comfortable taking on a large scoring load when necessary.

He's also a postseason hero. When Draymond Green talks about 16-game players, he's picturing Jimmy Butler. If healthy, Butler elevates his game in the postseason, taking on a larger load and propelling less-talented teams deep into the playoffs. Twice he has led the Heat to the NBA Finals despite coming from a low seed in the bracket.

The other benefit to this deal is that it doesn't involve any of the Warriors' draft picks, so they can still go out and make another deal for a player to further build out the rotation, turning depth into high-end talent. That deal could happen at the Trade Deadline or next offseason for another run.

The case against the trade

The reason this isn't a no-brainer trade, however, is primarily in the biographical details. Jimmy Butler is 35 years old, with Tom Thibodeau minutes on his body from early in his career and plenty of postseason minutes layered on top of that. He battles injuries every single year, and hasn't played more than 64 games since he played for the Bulls in 2016-17.

Sacrificing depth to bring in Butler is a catch-22, because the Warriors will need that depth to survive Butler's absences. They will need to manage his playing time in such a way to have him healthy for the postseason, which has not been the case for Butler recently.

On top of Butler's availability for this season is his availability past this season. Butler can decline his player option and become a free agent next summer, which puts a lot of pressure on the Warriors. How much do they commit to Butler for a long-term contract? After trading so much for him, and with Curry's career clock ticking, Butler will have a lot of leverage in negotiations.

The other elephant in the room, however, is whether Butler can be the No. 2 star on a team, as he would be on the Warriors. Butler is not a consistent 3-point shooter and is more of a deliberate on-ball scorer than an off-ball mover and cutter. He also hasn't played with an explosive guard in some time; he has paired with high-octane bigs in his last few stops. Adjusting to play with Stephen Curry would be a learning curve, made all the more difficult with his expected injury absences.

His lack of a 3-point shot would also make him a horrendous fit next to Draymond Green, especially if the Warriors also started Trayce Jackson-Davis as center. The spacing on offense would be prohibitive to an above-average offense despite the passing and intelligence of the players involved.

The players the Warriors give up here are not absolutely crucial, but they are valuable contributors. Andrew Wiggins plays an important role as a perimeter defender, and losing both Wiggins and Gary Payton II turns a strength into a potential weakness. The Warriors do have the depth to fill back in around the stars, however, with Moses Moody in particular able to take on a larger role if necessary.

Final Verdict

Knowing the second trade the Warriors would be able to make with their draft capital would help to clarify whether this is the right move. On the one hand, Butler is a proven postseason star and the Warriors don't know if and when other stars will come available. On the other, he is aging and injury-prone and due for a new deal.

That balance likely tips toward not making the deal, but it's a reasonable conversation to have. The Warriors may be good enough that adding a legitimate second star propels them into contention, so turning down such an opportunity would be a painful step. This is a difficult call, and it's very possible Jimmy Butler finds himself on the Warriors sometime this season.

Grade: B-