As the Golden State Warriors approach their final week of the regular season, with matchups against the Phoenix Suns, San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trailblazers, and Los Angeles Clippers pending, they need to run the gauntlet in order to have a chance at home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Coming off a brutal loss against the Houston Rockets, in which Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler were held to a combined 16 points, the Warriors need their stars more than ever.
In a competitive Western Conference, which could provide any number of difficult first-round matchups for Golden State, the franchise needs Butler -- its team-altering trade deadline acquisition -- to find his infamous playoff form as soon as possible in order for them to have any hopes at a deep playoff run.
The Warriors need Playoff Jimmy ASAP
Anthony Slater of The Athletic commented on Monday to 95.7 The Game's Willard and Dibs about the signs of Butler's age which have shown in his time with the Warriors.
"Jimmy's older. He doesn't have that pop and lift to the rim," Slater said. "He's hesitant at times to take challenge shots in traffic against size...The jumper just hasn't been there...He's never been your traditional superstar scorer."
While Butler's uncanny ability to draw contact has helped open up the Warriors' offense since his arrival to the team, his hesitancy to truly drive into contested layups has been one of the only downsides of his game.
Since Golden State acquired the 35-year-old and handed him a two-year, $111 million contract extension immediately following the trade, it is evident that they trust him to make the necessary adjustments come playoff time.
Across 64 playoff games with the Miami Heat, in which Butler took his team on two improbable runs to the NBA finals, he averaged 24.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 5.7 assists -- all of which sit well above his career numbers.
While Butler has never been a pure scorer at the level of someone like Curry, the manner in which he elevates his game in the most important moments is the quality that has aided him in his playoff success and the trait that the Warriors hope will manifest quickly.
The 6x All-Star is averaging 17.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 5.9 assists through 26 games with Golden State, having seen a dip in his overall scoring numbers over the past two seasons, yet routinely making up for this deficit through his willingness to make winning plays.
With a combination of a fully unleashed Butler, a version of Curry who's playing at an All-NBA First Team level, and a Defensive Player of the Year Draymond Green, the Warriors could hard to stop in this year's playoffs. But first, Butler will need to overcome any signs of aging he might be showing down the stretch.
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