This is not the season the Golden State Warriors envisioned. Rather than everything falling into place for a potential deep playoff run, the Warriors are banged up, are 29-27 and sit eighth in the West, and, without Stephen Curry (runner’s knee) for the next handful of games, are at risk of falling even further back in the West.
Despite all that, don’t expect massive changes this offseason.
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Jimmy Butler, who tore his ACL and will miss at least half of next season, told season ticket holders in a letter that he plans to be back.
“This story, which has been interrupted twice, is not complete. Not by a long shot. This period is simply a part of our journey. I can’t wait to see what next season holds and will treasure the opportunity to put my jersey back on and take the court with Steph, Dray, and the rest of the guys, in front of you all. I’m sure that when I return and hear all of you in unison chant “WAAAAARRRRRRIIIIORRRSSSSS,” it will push me forward and provide an incredible adrenaline rush.”
Rumors flew around at the trade deadline about the Warriors chasing Giannis Antetokounmpo, but the only way to reasonably make that work is to trade either the injured Butler or Draymond Green back to Milwaukee, to make the salaries balance. That led to a lot of speculation about Green, but Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob told Tim Kawakami of the San Francisco Standard that Green was never on the table.
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“He was never discussed in a trade; Mike [Dunleavy, Warriors GM] was 100% correct what he said. I know he got a lot of crap for that. And it did look defensive. I mean, I think he would say that in retrospect…
“We never really got engagement on some of the big deals to the point where you get into specific names. People can look at the roster and they can make assumptions about who might or might not have to go if you’ve got a certain person. But I can tell you he was never shopped in any way. He’s a core person in our franchise. You don’t trade a Draymond Green simply or easily. You do it if you have to, and you’re getting tremendous value and you’re improving your team. Even Draymond has said he understands that. You have to look at these things. But his name was never specifically discussed with another team. And that’s the truth.”
Maybe Antetokounmpo or some other big move lands in the Warriors’ lap this summer, but more likely is that Green and Curry start the season with, hopefully, a better supporting cast around them, Butler returns midseason, and maybe next year they can make another run in the Stephen Curry era.
