The Golden State Warriors bought low trading for Jimmy Butler ahead of the trade deadline with the risk coming from his two-year, $121 million extension that runs through the 26-27 season and were rewarded with a playoff berth and first round win over the Houston Rockets. The Warriors missed the playoffs in 2024 and were floundering after a fast start to the season before trading for Butler.
“Yeah, there were (concerns about Butler),” Joe Lacob said. “But you do your analysis, you make your choices, and, yeah, it was a little bit of a risk. But we’ve got to take risks in this life. And he’s worth every freaking penny. That’s all I can say. He’s fantastic.”
With Butler, the Warriors had a 23-8 record, the NBA’s third-best net rating, No. 1 defense and No. 8 offense.
“The way that everybody locked in (when he arrived), it made me feel welcome,” Butler said. “And we took off. … We never wavered. The confidence never went anywhere. (It’s a) really good group of hoopers. A really good group of people. So that’s what I’m gonna take into this next round, is (that) we’ve got some guys. We play at an extremely high level, and on any given night we can beat anyone.”
