Jimmy Butler isn’t Kevin Durant. He’s exactly what the Warriors need
PHOENIX Jimmy Butler crashed in a rim-rattling dunk in the third quarter of Golden State s - romp in Phoenix on Tuesday night It was a rare loud play for a superstar who thrives in the more subtle spaces between his more outwardly-audacious teammates I just want to do whatever it takes to win Butler explained If you re open my job is to get you the ball Butler took four shots grabbed two rebounds and had three assists in a stat-line that vastly understated his impact Butler ran the offense and rumbled on the low block as the group s power forward next to a locked-in Draymond Green playing defense that energized a Warriors group that saw every athlete on the ongoing roster get playing time against Phoenix Elsewhere in the building was Kevin Durant the one-time Warriors megastar who has missed the past four games with an ankle injury His association has lost seven consecutive games playoff elimination all but a certainty This winter Kevin Durant was reportedly linked to the Warriors as the business deadline approached the club kicking the tires on reuniting the iconic pair of Curry and KD Instead the deal fell through and Golden State shipped Andrew Wiggins to South Beach for Butler who had been linked to Phoenix for months Golden State Warriors Jimmy Butler III has saved the Warriors season Ray Chavez Bay Area News Group Two months later it is impossible to argue the Warriors made the wrong choice Yes the individual statistics are in Durant s favor The -foot- scoring machine has averaged points to go along with six rebounds and assists in games played Butler a mere points boards and assists in games But the win column squad stats and testimony of Butler s impact from teammates paint another story Related Articles High school softball rankings April Bay Area News Group top High school baseball rankings April Bay Area News Group Top Vote now Bay Area News Group girls athlete of the week Vote now Bay Area News Group boys athlete of the week I m going to school De La Salle star Oklahoma commit Alec Blair makes two-sport future clear I think everybody knows Jimmy as Playoff Jimmy the guy that scored in the finals and all that type of stuff Brandin Podziemski mentioned But I think so far sometimes he almost passes to a fault We want Jimmy to be ultra-aggressive Golden State is - since the arrangement jumping from the No seed to a crew battling for homecourt advantage in the first round The Suns went - during that stretch when Durant played The Warriors defense had the second-highest defensive rating in the NBA while ranking first in steals and points off turnovers since Butler arrived His ability to get to the line attempts per competition has also boosted Golden State to being the third-most prolific FT shooting group since the bargain While he has not had the -point scoring binges who earned him his Playoff Jimmy nickname Butler has consistently provided Golden State with clutch baskets down the stretch There s a reason coach Steve Kerr has repeatedly announced that the Butler transaction saved the Warriors season While a Durant-Curry pairing would have made for nostalgic and fun moments the addition of Butler has rocketed Golden State up the Western Conference standings The Warriors are - seeded sixth and in a four-way tie with the Los Angeles Clippers the imploding Nuggets and seventh-seeded Grizzlies Butler and the Warriors will play host to San Antonio on Wednesday
