The once-dynastic Golden State Warriors have been rejuvenated with the arrival of Jimmy Butler, who has helped the team go 8-2 since his trade from the Miami Heat in early February.
Warriors’ Steph Curry spoke glowingly of Butler and his impact after Thursday night’s 121-119 comeback win against the Brooklyn Nets, and other Golden State teammates have since had nothing but good things to say about the veteran star.
Butler admittedly left quite a few of his former NBA teams on less-than-desirable terms, and there were some floating concerns he wouldn’t fit well in the Warriors’ system. Ten games in, however, the Warriors are starting to look more and more like championship contenders, with Inside the NBA's Shaquille O’Neal recently giving Golden State its flowers for pulling off the Butler trade.
Shaq perfectly explained why the Warriors acquiring Butler was his favorite trade of the season thus far:
“This is my favorite trade,” Shaq said on Inside the NBA. “I know Jimmy was going to be playing with a new type of energy. He’s a two-way player, he can step out, shoot the three and play on the inside, Chuck mentioned earlier he’s definitely been going to the free throw line. Listen, he’s playing with a chip on his shoulder. What he did in Miami… If they get the right matchup in the playoffs, I would not want to face Golden State.”
Shaq says Butler to GSW was his "favorite trade" of the season 📈
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) March 7, 2025
Kenny says Jimmy is "playing a lot freer" alongside Steph 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/1wmdVWA8Sd
After a red-hot start with the Warriors, Butler has cooled off in past weeks, putting up single-digit points twice in his last five games. What the scoreboard doesn’t show is his high IQ on-court presence that has eased the pressure on Curry to constantly create shot opportunities. Butler consistently getting to the free throw line for easy buckets—he’s made 75-of-85 from the charity stripe so far—has felt like a breath of fresh air for the Warriors, too.
As things stand, Golden State would currently avoid the play-in tournament and sit in sixth place in the West (35-28), three games back of the Houston Rockets and Memphis Grizzlies.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Shaq Explains Why Jimmy Butler Move to Warriors Is His Favorite Trade of NBA Season.
