Jimmy Butler is doing it all for the Golden State Warriors through the first five games of the season, impacting significantly on both ends of the floor while also playing a mentoring role for the rising Jonathan Kuminga.
Yet going somewhat under the radar is the fact Butler has crucially found his 3-point shooting, something that completely alluded him late last season following his blockbuster arrival to the Warriors in February.
Jimmy Butler's proving an efficient 3-point shooter to start the season
Butler was incredibly important in completely shifting Golden State's fortunes in the 2024-25 season, but he did so while shooting just 27.9% from 3-point range on 2.3 attempts per game. That rose slightly to 30.6% during the playoffs, yet the difference in 3-point shooting between the Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves was stark once Stephen Curry went down with a hamstring injury in Game 1.
While the veteran forward may never be a high volume knockdown shooter, he has found his range in a way that offers some optimism of a return to the numbers he produced in 2023-24 with the Miami Heat.
Butler is now 8-of-14 (57.1%) from beyond the arc through the first five games of the season, having gone 3-of-4 during Tuesday's win over the L.A. Clippers which may have meant even more than usual given the low-scoring nature of Golden State's 98-79 victory.
The improved 3-point shooting has seen Butler's points increase from 17.9 last season, to 21.4 despite taking essentially the same number of field-goal attempts. That could be the difference between Butler earning a seventh All-Star selection or not, particularly if the Warriors can continue their form and be one of the top teams in the Western Conference.
Sure the 36-year-old isn't going to continue shooting at this current rate, but his 41.4% at the Heat two seasons ago does provide a reasonable and recent blueprint of what Golden State fans could expect going forward.
Not only is an improvement in 3-point shooting important for Butler's own game, it's arguably more important for the Warriors as a whole given the spacing concerns that did exist between himself, Jonathan Kuminga and Draymond Green entering the season.
That trio is now shooting 24-of-50 (48%) on threes so far this season, having gone a long way to eliminating the concerns that were evident just over a week ago. They're now all bonafide starters on one of the hottest teams in the league, with a big watch on whether Butler can continue to be a respectable 3-point threat within the Warrior offense.