The Golden State Warriors made their big swing at the trade deadline to try to vault into contention in the Western Conference, and the early returns are very positive. Jimmy Butler is blending in very well with the team since being traded to The Bay before the trade deadline.
His relationship with head coach Steve Kerr is a big reason why. It's clear after Butler's time at multiple stops across the league, including the Miami Heat where he was dealt from, that he is a big personality that needs to be allowed to be himself in order to get the best out of him.
So far, Kerr and the Warriors have given Butler plenty of freedom off the court and around the team. When Butler arrived in Golden State, Kerr gave him two things that he absolutely must do, via Anthony Slater of The Athletic.
“His stature and success have generated an amount of power he has — and will — unapologetically leverage,” Slater wrote. “He’d never had a conversation with Kerr prior to the trade-deadline blockbuster that sent him to Golden State. But in their first one-on-one, the Warriors’ coach laid out his two non-negotiables: Show up on time and compete to win as part of the group. That’s it.”
Jimmy Butler, Warriors prospering early in partnership
Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler III (10) during the fourth quarter against the Toronto Raptors at Chase Center.
John Hefti-Imagn Images
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Jimmy Butler has re-energized a Warriors team that desperately needed a shakeup heading into the trade deadline. Since the deal, the Warriors are 16-3 in the 19 games that Butler has played in, and they have skyrocketed up the standings as a result.
Coming out of a disappointing loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday, the Warriors are currently up out of the play-in and are in the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference standings. With some of the teams above them, specifically the Memphis Grizzlies and the banged-up Denver Nuggets, sliding, Golden State will have plenty of chances to keep moving up over the final 11 games of the schedule.
Butler has really opened up the floor for the Warriors' offense, and specifically Stephen Curry. Butler helps the Warriors get some free points at the free throw line and helps create space by putting constant pressure on the rim, which gives Curry more space to get some open looks on the perimeter.
Curry is still working his way back from a pelvic contusion that he suffered last Thursday against the Toronto Raptors, but it seems like he will be back in the lineup relatively soon. When he gets back in the lineup alongside Butler and Draymond Green, this Warriors team should go right back to being one of the best teams in the NBA. As long as the three of them are humming, nobody will want to see this group in a playoff series.