Jimmy Butler recently went down with a devastating ACL injury a week ago.
This completely altered the Warriors' course – not only for the imminent playoff push that looks to be amongst the very last for their superstar Stephen Curry, but for next year's campaign as well.
As many NBA fans are aware – especially thanks to last season's ACL injuries of Damian Lillard, Tyrese Haliburton, Dejounte Murray, and Jayson Tatum – these types of injuries don't just take a summer to rehab; they often bleed over well into the better part of the next NBA season.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, Butler was not only a focal point of their franchise on the floor, but also in the salary books – he's making a lofty $54M this season and $56M the next. Even if another team wanted to take on such a financial responsibility in a hypothetical deal for the aging star, very few would tangibly be able to do so.
According to NBA insider Brett Siegel, "The Warriors trading Jimmy Butler is on the table."
Hawks have the ability to make an offer that no other team can match
Barring a LeBron trade to the Golden State Warriors – something that is looking more and more unrealistic as the wins continue to pile up between LeBron and Luka in Los Angeles – no other team (outside of Butler's former team, the Miami Heat) boasts a pair of expiring contracts tallying upwards of $40M in the entire league.
Enter the Atlanta Hawks and their duo of Kristaps Porzingis and CJ McCollum.
Porzingis and McCollum are both earning $30M, for a total of roughly $60M in expiring contracts. No other team in the entire league can offer $40M, much less $60M, between two players in expiring deals.
Sure, teams could offer lengthier contracts, but the Warriors have demonstrated their preference to keep cap flexibility, especially as Steph Curry ages. Maintaining the ability to move pieces around freely, especially for larger market teams, is highly sought after – see the Trae Young trade.
Should the Warriors wish to move on from Butler and give Steph Curry two legitimate tools in what may be his last playoff push ever (or at the very least, nearing it), CJ McCollum and Kristaps Porzingis are two of the most tried and true tools a GM could ask for. A healthy Porzingis anchored the Celtics' defense to a title just two years ago, and CJ would be the perfect shooter to flank Curry.
Given the obvious benefit for the Warriors, what's in it for the Hawks?
Atlanta stands to benefit from draft compensation. Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. is allegedly willing to part with draft compensation, but not too much – recently linked to Pelican Trey Murphy, the Warriors are unwilling to surrender more than 2 firsts in addition to the young talents Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody.
Not only would Kuminga and Moody be completely unnecessary to include in a deal with the Hawks, but the idea that one first round pick – no more than two – would be amenable for both sides is not remotely ridiculous to posit.
Atlanta would stand to gain future draft capital and a veteran leader, as well as making use of the valuable cap space at its fingertips heading into this offseason. Golden State benefits by immediately adding proven talent to an aging roster in dire need of it. Everybody wins.
Make the call, Onsi.