After Kevin Durant snapped any chance of a reunion with his desire not to head back to the Bay, the Golden State Warriors have once again been left out in the cold now less than 24 hours from the NBA trade deadline.
Yet it seems the Warriors desire for another star will push on through the darkness, even if that star has already indicated that they don't want to play for the franchise beyond this season.
The Warriors are reportedly circling back to Jimmy Butler
Remember, it was Jimmy Butler before Durant, that told Golden State he had no interest in playing there, at least not beyond this season by which point he can opt out from his player option and become an unrestricted free agent in the summer.
That's not stopping the Warriors though, with NBA insider Marc Stein reporting that Mike Dunleavy Jr. and the front office are turning their attention back to Butler in the remaining hours before the deadline.
The Warriors have now shifted their trade focus to acquiring Jimmy Butler, @TheSteinLine has learned, after abandoning the pursuit of Kevin Durant.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 5, 2025
Durant's strong reservations about a Warriors return, first reported here, sent them in a new direction: https://t.co/bd3NQ89Jbu https://t.co/YK1Cosc3xD
Stein also reports that Dennis Schroder's expiring $13 million contract is a "central element" to acquiring Butler. However, that would only be a small piece to get to the 35-year-old's $48.8 million salary, meaning the Warriors would almost certainly have to relinquish Andrew Wiggins or Draymond Green.
Wiggins remains the likely outgoing salary in a significant Golden State trade before the deadline, but rumblings of Green's future have also starting to increase over the past 24 hours, particularly after it was reported that the Suns had interest in the 4x All-Star.
Either way, trading Wiggins or Green for Butler would be a colossal mistake on a number of fronts. Would the 6x All-Star even be that much of an upgrade, especially when you take into account his age, injury history and the fact Schroder and other players/assets would have to be involved.
Most importantly though, Butler has already warned the Warriors that he won't re-sign. What's the point of a middling team giving up significant pieces to get a two-to-three month rental? Even if Butler actually bought in and played well, he's no longer at the level that's going to catapult Golden State into championship contention.
Even if things went well and the franchise actually convinced Butler to remain beyond this season, it would likely take a significant contract extension that would come with exorbitant risk given his age and injury worries.
The Warriors need to accept that Butler and Durant are off the table, and turn their attention to someone else before this entire situation comes crashing down even further.