The Golden State Warriors were handed a 124-115 loss by the Atlanta Hawks at the start of their road trip. They do not have much time to dwell on that result, though, as their next game will have a lot of eyes on it.
Jimmy Butler will be making his return to the Kaseya Center for the first time since being traded by the Miami Heat.
Butler helped the Heat reach two NBA Finals during his time in South Beach but considering the circumstances that surrounded his exit, it will be interesting to see what kind of a reception he gets in Miami.
Butler was suspended three times by the Heat this season before being traded to the Warriors.
"Yeah, I was traded from there, yada, yada, yada," Butler said. "Yeah, it didn't end the way that people wanted to, yada yada yada.
"But that's so far behind me now. I don't even think about it. I don't pay attention to nothing except for the trajectory of this squad."
Butler does not even appear to be curious about the reception that he will get from the Heat fans on his return to Miami.
"Not really, don't make no difference," Butler said. "I'm a member of the Golden State Warriors. I love that fan base. They showed me a lot of love while I was there. But I'm there to win now. I'm on the opposing team."
While talking about his time in Miami, Butler sounded disappointed at not having won anything despite making some playoff runs.
"We were alright," Butler said. "We didn't win nothing like we were supposed to. So I don't know. We made some cool runs. We had some fun. I think that's all we did."
The Heat have had a rough time since trading Butler. They are currently on a 10-game losing streak and have slipped down to 10th in the East.
That being said, the Warriors cannot make the mistake of taking this game lightly, especially if they are without Stephen Curry again.
The West is very tight right now. The Warriors sit at sixth with a 41-30 record and the Los Angeles Clippers (40-30) and Minnesota Timberwolves (41-31) are right on their tail in the race for the playoff spots.
Related: Jimmy Butler Makes Brutally Honest Claim About Warriors Without Stephen Curry
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This story was originally published March 23, 2025 at 10:00 AM.