Let The Chaos Begin: The Warriors Reportedly Have Their Sights Set On Trading For Either Jimmy Butler Or LeBron

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Given that we only have NBA Cup games on the schedule (that OKC defense last night, holy shit) at the moment, there's not a lot going on while we wait for the full slates of games to return tomorrow night. Whenever there's that lull in actual games to react to, that's the time when "rumors" and "reports" thrive. Everyone needs something to talk about (including yours truly), and nobody can resist a juicy trade rumor. That's especially true when you have big-time names and contending teams being involved.

As of today, that now consists of the Warriors, Jimmy Butler, and LeBron

Alright, you know the drill!

Whenever this stuff comes up, you have to follow the breadcrumbs that are given to us by those in the know. First, we had Shams talk about how the Warriors were into the idea of trading for a scoring/playmaking star.

and it's not a stretch to think he knew who that guy was, but things weren't ready to be put out there just yet. Why do I say that? Because who do we think put out the initial Jimmy Bulter list when the trade rumor dropped a few days later? Ah right..

When we first got the list of Butler teams, it didn't really make too much sense, given the fact that the Mavs don't even have the contracts to make the money work and the Rockets didn't exactly seem like a team that was desperate to gut their roster given how well they've started the season.

That left the Warriors. Were the other teams included as leverage play in an effort to get GS to pony up? Time will tell, but that's really only part of the story now that we have Windy pretty much confirming that the Warriors are looking to get into the Jimmy Butler business. Maybe I'm alone here, but I still can't see the Lakers trading LeBron during the season. I'm all for chaos, but that seems like a level I'm going to have to see to believe. For the sake of this blog, I'm going to throw that part out of Windy's report. It's too far-fetched of a rumor for even me to bite. 

As always, the timing of these rumors is important. Today's date is December 11th, and when you want to talk about trade rumors around Jimmy Butler and specifically how it relates to Golden State, the timing is key. In just 4 days, any player who signed a free agent deal over the summer is eligible to be traded. For anyone who wants to trade for Butler, that means you're going to have to get in the ballpark of his $48M salary. Why does this matter? Because GS has 3 newly signed guys who can absolutely serve as salary filler to help the Warriors get to that number

Buddy Hield - $8.7M

Kyle Anderson - $8.7M

De'Anthony Melton - $12.8M (out for the year)

Given how well Buddy Hield has fit in that team, I'm going to say he's out. 

If you take the Anderson/Melton money and add in pieces around it, there technically is a path to a trade. Here's a quick example of what it "could" look like, and figure whatever picks are needed to be included are

Now, does that make GS better? Who knows. But if we are being told that they are in on high-salary players like Butler and LeBron, then they are most likely going to need Wiggins' money since Kuminga and Podz are still on their rookie deals. 

With still just under 2 more months to go until the official trade deadline, a lot can still happen. If the Heat go on a massive run, maybe they say screw the risk and just ride it out, hoping that Butler just picks up his $52M player option. Maybe when push comes to shove, the Warriors don't want to give up that many rotation players for a guy who they can't be sure stays beyond this year. But you could also tell me that once we get to next week and that December 15th date, GS pulls the trigger and Jimmy Butler is moved. 

That's the beauty of NBA trade rumor drama, just when you think you're out, it pulls you back in.