Jimmy Butler was a man that wanted to be paid last season, having created an awkward and difficult situation at the Miami Heat that ultimately led to his move to the Golden State Warriors in February.
In order to convince Butler to stay beyond the season, the Warriors granted the 6x All-Star his wish upon arrival in the form of a two-year, $111 million extension. The early returns have been excellent as Butler changed the fortunes of Golden State's season and helped them to the second-round of the playoffs, yet right now that contract is also contributing to an elongated free agency process.
Jimmy Butler's contract is impacting the Warriors' offseason
Had Butler been willing to accept something less than the max -- say something in the realm of $40 million per year like fellow veteran stars James Harden and Kyrie Irving -- then the Warriors would be further away from the first and second tax aprons right now.
Perhaps that would have been enough to create a little more wiggle room for Golden State in regard to their Jonathan Kuminga negotiations. Right now the front office isn't willing to offer anything more than a two-year, $45 million deal that includes a second year player option, something that Kuminga has thus far turned his back on with still over a month until the October 1 deadline on a $7.9 million qualifying offer.
Had the Warriors saved $15-20 million over the next two years of Butler's contract, then they may be more inclined to fully guarantee Kuminga's second year. Alternatively, they may have been more open to going slightly higher on the first year to get the young forward to give in on a second year team option.
The impact of Butler's contract goes well beyond Kuminga too, with the extra room potentially giving the Warriors more flexibility to go and sign a player they otherwise couldn't/didn't. Maybe they could have had access to the full mid-level exception, helping to lure away Bradley Beal or someone of that nature who ultimately signed with a rival team.
These are all hypotheticals of course, but the reality is that Golden State are sitting nearly eight weeks into free agency without a single move. Having Butler on a slightly lesser contract could have only aided their manoeuvrability, particularly when it comes to the Kuminga situation which is holding up everything.
Butler was a godsend for the Warriors over the second-half of last season, but the pressure nonetheless remains on him over the next two years to live up to a contract extension that could begin to age poorly if he shows some signs of decline.