Golden State Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. sent an ultimatum to the team after they pulled all the stops to acquire Jimmy Butler at the NBA trade deadline.
“I told them, ‘It’s time to win,’” Dunleavy Jr. said in an interview with HoopsHype. “Whatever happened this season thus far where we’ve had some tough losses and our record isn’t what it needs to be. This signals it’s time to win, no [expletive] around. We’ll see where we can get to.”
The Warriors have responded to Dunleavy Jr.’s ultimatum with a 13-2 record since the trade. They are 13-1 with Butler in the active lineup.
Over their last 15 games, the Warriors are No. 3 in both offensive (121.5) and defensive (108.7) ratings and No. 2 in net rating (12.9). Only the league’s top team and the hottest with a 16-game winning streak, the Cleveland Cavaliers, coached by Steve Kerr’s former top assistant Kenny Atkinson, are ahead of the Warriors in net rating (13.7) during this span.
Mike Dunleavy Jr.-Jimmy Butler Connection
Despite Butler’s messy exit in Miami, they had no qualms in signing him quickly to a two-year, $111 million extension after agreeing to the trade. Dunleavy told Hoopshype that there was a “level of comfort” with their decision having played with Butler before in Chicago.
Dunleavy Jr. knows what type of player they are getting from a committed Butler.
“I think there’s a talent level that he brings that we needed at the top of the roster,” Dunleavy Jr. told HoopsHype. “There’s also a presence, a competitiveness, and an IQ. We need all those things on the court and in big moments. I think it raises the level of all of our players. Not only our role players but also Steph [Curry] and Draymond [Green] to know they’ve got another guy with them that they can look around and feel like, “Alright, we’ve got a chance.”
The 35-year-old Butler has fit like a glove into the Warriors system, complementing Curry’s outside game with his interior presence and toughness on defense.
Butler is averaging 16.8 points, 5.8 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals. He’s making 6.4 of 7.3 free throws.
Since the Butler trade, the Warriors are No. 1 in free throws made, averaging 21.3 in their last 15 games. They were last, averaging only 14.7 free throws made per game before Butler arrived.
Andre Iguodala 2.0?
Butler’s unselfish play has also catapulted the Warriors to become No. 1 in assists, averaging 31.7 per game over their last 15 games.
In their 130-104 rout of the Sacramento Kings on Thursday, March 13, Butler only had six points but dished out a game-high seven assists. He raved about Green leading the Warriors in scoring with 23 points on a night their leading scorer, Curry, was held to 11 points.
“I love that,” Butler said of Green’s high-scoring night. “It could be anybody on any given night. That’s the best part about this roster is you’re going to get the ball when you’re open and you can pretty much do anything that you want with it.
Kerr likened Butler’s midseason acquisition to the Andre Iguodala trade in 2013 that unlocked the Warriors leading to their first three championships.
“Things have clearly turned with him (Butler),” Kerr told Hoopshype. “He’s a great complement to what we already do with his ability to pass, but what he’s adding is that maturity and poise. We’ve made the Andre (Iguodala) comparison. He’s not the exact same player, but he has the same influence reading what’s happening, settling us down, and creating good possessions at both ends.”
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. Sent Ultimatum After Jimmy Butler Trade appeared first on Heavy Sports.