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What has happened to the Golden State Warriors? When the season first started, this team looked like it had regained its championship relevance in the Western Conference with a 12-3 record and ranking among the best offensive and defensive teams. After losing on their home floor to the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas, the Warriors are now 15-14 and have rapidly become the biggest question mark in the NBA trade market.
A 38-point performance from Curry seemed like a Christmas miracle for Golden State given his recent 2-point and 10-point games in disappointing losses to the Memphis Grizzlies and Indiana Pacers, respectively, yet this was simply a response to what transpired pregame for the Warriors. Before their 115-113 loss on Wednesday night, Golden State held a pregame players-only meeting with Curry urging the team to get things going in the right direction.
Facing LeBron James and the Lakers on Christmas, the NBA's marquee matchup of the day, was the perfect opportunity for the Dubs to regain momentum, but more importantly, their confidence. It seemed like this was going to happen after Steph knocked down two insane triples with under 12 seconds to tie the game at 113 until Austin Reaves played the role of The Grinch and stole this potential win on Christmas from the Warriors with a game-winning layup.
Another loss, their 11th in the last 14 games, puts the Warriors in the danger zone. This team has gone from sitting alone at the top of the Western Conference standings to now barely holding onto a spot in the play-in tournament in a matter of one month. This is just a rough patch for Golden State, as 13 of their last 14 games have been against teams with a .500 or better record. At the same time, it's become clear that the Warriors have regressed since their 12-3 start to the year.
Through their first 15 games, the Dubs averaged 119.1 points per game and only allowed 109.1 points per game to their opponents. Aside from owning one of the league's best point differentials at the time, Golden State ranked sixth and fourth in offensive and defensive rating, respectively, during this span.
Over their last 14 games, the Warriors are averaging just 106.1 points per game while allowing 113.0 points per game to their opponents. In this span, Curry's crew ranks 25th in offensive rating and 21st in defensive rating. Aside from the team's offensive struggles as a whole, the bench unit has gone from averaging 54.2 points per game during the first 15 games of the season to averaging just 38.9 points per contest over their last 14 games.
If anything has become apparent after this Christmas loss to the Lakers, it's that the Warriors are on the clock with exactly six weeks until the Feb. 6 trade deadline. Changes need to occur and changes will occur, yet head coach Steve Kerr admits he is still trying to figure out his roster.
Steve Kerr, Warriors searching for answers
One could dissect the Warriors' schedule early on and conclude that it was a lot easier than it is now, which is one of the reasons why they found so much success. But this team was still able to defeat the likes of the Boston Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, and Dallas Mavericks during their first 15 games of the 2024-25 season. Those four teams are all among the seven-best teams in this past week's NBA power rankings.
What has transpired over the last month for the Warriors is a product of inconsistencies catching up to them. Aside from undefined roles existing up and down this roster, Kerr is still attempting to figure out the best way to form consistent rotations for his team on a nightly basis.
“In fairness to our guys, we've been all over the map this year rotation-wise,” Kerr stated in his postgame remarks on Wednesday. “We've had a million different starting lineups. Guys are in and out of certain roles (and) certain rotations. I'm well aware of that, and it's hard as a player to not know how many minutes you're going to get. What minutes you're going to get.
“The reality is we're searching.”
What exactly are the Warriors still searching for? In the context that Kerr is using, he's saying that the team is still figuring out their identity and how to allocate minutes across the board. However, this idea of searching certainly has a deeper meaning for this Warriors team as a whole since they are searching for answers to their recent problems on the trade market.
It is inevitable that Golden State will make at least one more change between now and the trade deadline after acquiring Dennis Schroder from the Brooklyn Nets. Given their recent struggles, they are almost forced to make some kind of switch. Then again, Kerr has continued to defend his team and the fact that the Warriors are one of the deepest rosters in the league.
“Our roster is really deep, and we've got a lot of guys who can play. Every game calls for something different. That's the issue. There are certain games we need more shooting. Certain games we need more defense. So, we've got a lot of guys who can play, but it's been difficult to develop consistent rotations and lineup combos. I think that has not been easy for the guys.”
Confidence is one of the greatest influencers on how an NBA season plays out. The teams with the most confidence in themselves can achieve great things, as talent doesn't always decide the outcome of every matchup. The Warriors' confidence is broken right now, and whether they believe in themselves or not, management won't sit back and wait for everything to change during this prolonged losing skid.
Curry is not getting any younger, and the Warriors' championship window is rapidly closing. That is what makes the next six weeks and the NBA trade market so important for Golden State.
Does Jimmy Butler trade make sense?
The hottest name on the trade block is none other than Miami Heat superstar Jimmy Butler. After wanting a contract extension from Pat Riley and the Heat this past offseason, Butler did not get what he sought from his organization. This has been the main motivating factor behind reports suggesting that Butler would prefer to be moved from Miami ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline.
Whether or not this actually happens is the greatest mystery around the NBA not only due to the type of talent Butler is, but due to the weight his contract carries. While he is making about $48.8 million this season, Butler can opt out of his $52.4 million player option for the 2025-26 season and become an unrestricted free agent at 35 years old next summer.
Along with the Phoenix Suns, the Warriors have been mentioned countless times as Butler's top destination in a trade this season. The idea of pairing Butler with Curry and Draymond Green makes sense since he can be that second playmaker and superstar Golden State has been searching for, but the complications that come with pursuing the Heat star create a heavy burden.
The Warriors front office worked extremely hard to create financial and cap flexibility this past offseason when they let Chris Paul and Klay Thompson walk in free agency. For the first time in forever, Golden State is not the highest taxpaying team in the league, and they are operating as a team over the cap. Due to some sign-and-trades made to acquire Kyle Anderson and Buddy Hield, the Dubs are hard-capped at the $178.1 million first apron, meaning their total cap allocations can't cross this threshold during the 2024-25 season no matter what.
Any scenario to pursue Butler immediately results in the Warriors limiting themselves financially since they would need to agree to a long-term extension with the veteran star. Not to mention, going out and trading for him is not as simple as it sounds. To get to Butler's $48.8 million cap hit and remain below the first apron, Golden State would have to be willing to part ways with Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Schroder, and other assets.
Wiggins has bounced back this season, leading to the Dubs' hesitance to explore trade opportunities with him. There are also questions about where the organization stands on Kuminga and Schroder — whose salary can be aggregated in trades on Feb. 5 and 6, but not before then.
Although mutual interest exists between Butler's camp and the Warriors regime, there has not been steady dialogue between the two organizations, league sources told ClutchPoints. The only scenario that could possibly work for both teams would be Butler heading to Golden State with Alec Burks and Kevin Love in a deal that sees Wiggins, Kuminga, Schroder, and a player like Kevon Looney going to South Beach. Even so, the Heat would still need to move a small salary to maintain their financial positioning.
Based on where the Warriors are as a franchise, the chances of this happening are slim. At the same time, the Warriors should own the best odds to land Butler because they are one of the few teams Butler would want to play for who can find a way to make this trade work.
Nonetheless, Heat president Pat Riley made a statement on Thursday that effectively shut down all trade rumors pertaining to Butler, simply saying, “We are not trading Jimmy Butler.”
If Butler is out of the picture for Golden State ahead of the trade deadline this season, plenty of options still exist.
Other trade options for Warriors
Butler is not the only prominent name involved in trade chatter around the NBA. More specifically, he isn't the only impactful talent being linked to the Warriors.
Before agreeing to terms on a trade with the Brooklyn Nets for Schroder, the Warriors inquired about forwards Cam Johnson and Dorian Finney-Smith, sources said. While these conversations were nothing more than exploratory and never advanced to serious discussions for either Johnson or Finney-Smith, these remain two focal talents that Golden State and many other contenders have been eyeing.
The Nets, however, are prepared to wait things out and create a bidding war between teams vying for their talent. Sean Marks and Brooklyn's front office are in no hurry to trade away the wealth of their roster and are comfortable with keeping Johnson past the trade deadline since he still has a handful of years left on his contract. Around the league, the belief is that Johnson will be one of the more impactful players traded before the deadline on Feb. 6.
As far as other stars like Butler go, there is still a level of uncertainty that surrounds the trade market this season. Zach LaVine and Brandon Ingram are two All-Stars talents available, yet Golden State hasn't pursued either player dating back to the trade deadline last season, league sources said. Instead, the idea for the Warriors is if they are going to pull off a few moves between now and the trade deadline to maximize their title potential, they will do so to add flexibility on the wing and reliable depth.
Although unwilling to do so during the offseason, the Warriors are certainly more willing than ever before to discuss their young core of Kuminga, Moses Moody, and Brandin Podziemski in trade discussions, sources said. This opens several possibilities for how the Warriors could attack the trade deadline.
As previously reported on ClutchPoints, Golden State has been linked to Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo, Portland Trail Blazers defensive wing Matisse Thybulle, and two Toronto Raptors players in Kelly Olynyk and Bruce Brown. Kyle Kuzma, Jonas Valanciunas, Nikola Vucevic, and De'Andre Hunter are other players whispered in league circles as Warriors trade targets.
All of Golden State's plans for the trade deadline revolve around what direction they want to go. Are their young talents like Kuminga and Podziemski truly available in trade talks, or is this a smokescreen for a bigger plan in the future? Would Mike Dunleavy Jr. and his front office leverage first-round picks now to maximize their potential for the remainder of the 2024-25 season?
Whereas requests to trade for players like Johnson, DiVincenzo, and Hunter would be met with a steep asking price, other impactful talents like Kuzma, Brown, and Olynyk could be pursued at a fairly reasonable cost. Out of all these players, Kuzma has been the name that always seems to come up in discussions around the league. That can't be a coincidence.
The Washington Wizards are very willing to move any players on their roster outside of Bilal Coulibaly, Alex Sarr, and their other recent draft picks. Kuzma, Valanciunas, Malcolm Brogdon, and Jordan Poole are all available and the Wizards are willing to hear all offers that come their way. Momentum is building for Kuzma's eventual departure in the next several weeks.
Golden State and Washington have done business before dating back to their swap of Poole for Paul before the 2023-24 season, so it is certainly not out of the realm of possibilities that these two organizations could once again come together to swap talent in a deal revolving around Kuzma. After all, a pursuit of the 29-year-old forward who averaged 22.2 points per game last season could see the Warriors keep Wiggins and Kuminga if they were to frame a package around draft compensation.
A player like Vucevic, who was thought to have a first-round pick as his price tag entering trade season, could now be available for multiple second-round picks, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. Regarding the Warriors, the only problem is that they traded a vast majority of their second-round picks in the deal to land Schroder from Brooklyn. It is also safe to assume the Bulls would be eyeing either Moody or Kuminga from the Warriors in potential trade talks.
The point is that options exist for the Warriors on the trade market outside of Butler and other superstar talents. There is an obvious need for another superstar next to Curry, but that type of talent Golden State is in search of is not available right now. Any scenario to land this type of player would likely come during the offseason unless a groundbreaking trade request emerged over the next few weeks from an All-Star talent elsewhere in the league.
Many have been keeping an eye on De'Aaron Fox's status with the Sacramento Kings given his contract situation, yet the Kings have made it very clear that they hold zero intentions of making Fox available in trade discussions, sources said. The interesting thing about Fox and his connection to the Warriors is that he signed a deal with Curry Brand in 2023 and recently released his first signature shoe. Not that there are any real connections here between the Warriors and Kings, two bitter in-division rivals, but this is at least something to keep in the back of your mind if Fox was to ever request a trade from Sacramento.
Curry has done everything possible to try and snap the Warriors out of their recent funk. It is is now obvious that he is going to need some more help if Golden State is to keep their championship window ajar. What the Dubs decide to do over the next six weeks will set the course for how the trade deadline plays out.
Simultaneously, it will forge the Warriors' future for years to come, well after Curry and Green retire.
