The Miami Heat are finalizing a trade to send Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors for Andrew Wiggins and a draft pick in a multiteam trade. Dave DuFour, Zena Keita, Es Baraheni, and Marcus Thompson react to how Jimmy Butler works with the Warriors, the locker room chemistry, and how Andrew Wiggins will do in Miami. Then, the crew discuss the other trades that happened today including Valanciunas to the Kings, Kyle Kuzma to the Bucks and more.Host: Dave DuFourWith: Es Baraheni, Zena Keita, & Marcus ThompsonExecutive Producer: Andrew SchlechtAudio Producer: Grayson MoodyNBA TRADE DEADLINE BONANZAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNz-FEYRNnk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Chapter 1: What led to Jimmy Butler's trade to the Warriors?
Good morning, everybody. It's an emergency pod, emergency podcast week. Jimmy Butler trade edition. Dave Dufour, Espera Henney, Zena Kata, Marcus Thompson. Marcus, you helped break the news. Jimmy Butler is now a Golden State Warrior. How the heck did this happen?
I guess if I could put it into one word, it would be desperation. Desperation. Actually, let's go with thirst. I like thirst. Thirst is a very all-encompassing word. Two thirsty parties. Jimmy hunting for a contract extension. He ends up getting $110 million guaranteed after this year. Which is not what he wanted, but, you know, better than nothing.
And the Warriors have been just absolutely desperate for somebody to put next to Steph. So much so, like, they didn't always want Jimmy. Like, Jimmy was not the apple of their eye. But sometimes... As Zena would never know, as you know, and I know you know, Dave, sometimes you just take whatever's left over in the club. You feel me?
That's not what we are running around here. Listen, well, you know, it's sort of like we talked about this the last time you were here, Marcus. You know, they were maybe in on Cam Johnson, and of course they were in on Paul George. They've been looking for this, like, wing type of guy who can create – You think about Jimmy Butler with these guys. They already kind of have shooting concerns.
I'm already thinking about the fit on the court, and it's not exactly the most seamless fit.
I mean, it's better than what they had. I mean, if we just really just pull back – And look at this. They were relying heavily on Dennis Schroeder and Buddy Heald. Like, that's what we were talking about. You know what I'm saying? And then they started 12-3, and it looked juicy, right? It looked good. But then at some point, it's Dennis Schroeder and Buddy Heald. Like, that's the reality.
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Chapter 2: How does Jimmy Butler fit with the Warriors' roster?
So, obviously, Jimmy's not a three-point shooter. But to me, where he fits is – They just don't have dudes who could take two dribbles, get to a spot, and take a shot. They don't have that. They have it in Steph, but the other team is like, Steph, you're not shooting tonight, right? So Jimmy, if he just lives in the mid-range, he gives them another layer of offense that they just desperately need.
And plus, like... There's just something to be said about a star, man. If you guard Steph like they guard Steph, where they basically treat the rest of the team like a 24-hour fitness rec squad, Jimmy will torture you. That's what they needed. They needed somebody to say, how dare you guard me like this? I will embarrass your family. Jimmy might say that.
Jimmy's the guy who's like, you better not do this to me, and they just haven't had that. There are some issues, but there's just some fundamental things they lacked, and The best version of Jimmy definitely provides them. Marcus, I'm wondering about the – sorry, Zena.
Well, you can't cut off the black woman or black history. Go ahead, Zena. Yeah, you go ahead, Zena. It's February. We in this building.
My bad. So my thing is you said somebody that gets to the mid-range. We've been seeing Andrew Wiggins improve his game and being able to do that, especially with the absence of Jonathan Kaminga. He absolutely has become that go-to guy that can get to the post in the mid-post area, make a move, or get to a spot in the middle of the paint. But I do agree with you. Andrew Wiggins is not –
attract that star power level of attention on defense. But was there not an opportunity to work with Wiggins and move others on the team?
Nah, I mean, first off, the money doesn't work. They had to get to, I think Jimmy was at $49 million. And any deal like that, it's got to be either Draymond or Wiggins. Those are the only two salaries. I mean, I haven't seen a six-for-one deal ever in the NBA. You know what I'm saying? But the Warriors are in a tough spot because they can't do within 20%. They're so close. They're hard capped.
They got about maybe $500,000 left, you know what I'm saying, which for regular people like me, if I only had $500,000, I'd be good. For them, they got to get really close to $49 million. So it's just hard to do it without those salaries. So that's how you know they're desperate because they did not want to trade Wiggins. And if you took a straw poll, which I did –
about who would you rather have, Wiggins or Butler, it wasn't a landslide, right? A lot of people were like, man, let's just let me keep Wiggins. But they are desperate. And if you just watch the Warriors and just watch Steph, just watch Steph slowly deteriorating as he's exhausted trying to carry a whole team. They just got desperate and had to do something.
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Chapter 3: What are the implications of trading Andrew Wiggins?
If he comes in and he does his thing, you know, and he plays like the Jimmy who we saw drag Gabe Vincent and them to the finals, like he'll be great. Draymond don't really have beef with those type of guys. Like when those guys come in, I think Draymond is one of the people who like – recognize his softness and that's where he kind of has the issues.
But if you like tough and you go back at him, Draymond will go with you. You go back at him and he don't tend to have problems. He actually ends up being close with those guys. Like we thought DeMarcus Cousins is going to be a problem. They ended up best friends, right? Like that's just, that's how it is. So they like, you know, they're kind of birds of a feather.
I mean, Steph is always amenable to just about everybody. Um, You know, it really just comes down to Jimmy. Like, what Jimmy are you getting? I mean, that's the bottom line. He's got the guaranteed money now and extending. Yeah, he's got.
Look, he's coming into Steph Curry's house. Right. And and he has got the contract. And at this point in his career, it's not like he can do this again. Right. He just can't. So I actually think the chemistry part of it from a personality side.
will work itself out i i don't worry about that too much at all um i don't know jimmy i tend to think so i just don't know him you know what i'm saying yeah yeah it takes knowing somebody to be like but i from what i know jimmy it makes a lot of sense like i could see it actually working
Yeah. Marcus, you got anything else on this trade? I know you got to run. You're getting ready to go catch a flight.
So, you know, the part that's really interesting, and I love wigs, man, like Andrew Wiggins. Andrew Wiggins is a dude, man. He is the best guy. It's been a long time since I've seen or heard a team just be kind of heartbroken by having a traded dude. You know what I'm saying? I'm not at the game. Slater's in Utah. They play Utah and then the Lakers.
But there's reports of possible tears and heartfelt divide. When Wiggins came in 2019, he came to the Warriors as kind of like – A disappointment, right? Was never able to carry the Timberwolves where they thought he would. And he completely reinvented himself. He's a great dude. He's a champion. So either I'm old and feel sentimental about this stuff just because I'm old. No, you should be.
No, I feel sentimental too, Marcus. When you think about what Wiggins went through, what this team went through on behalf of Wiggins, the journey they went through together alongside each other, supporting each other, protecting each other, not only the team protecting Wiggins, but Wiggins also looking out for the team when he came back and played well.
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Chapter 4: What are the chemistry concerns with Jimmy Butler joining the Warriors?
Well, if you've got if you've got another second just before.
Yeah, I'm good. I'm good.
Are they done? We still got, you know, another what it was 18 hours or so before the trade deadline. What are we looking at to complete their their moves this week?
I don't think they're done. They still have about $17 million in expiring contracts. Although, if Wiggins hurt, those two expiring contracts are going to be – man, it's going to be lugubrious in the Warriors organization. It will be very – It would be sad because Kavon Looney and Gary Payton II are just two absolutely beloved figures. But that's $17 million of expiring contracts.
So they still have needs, even if they've handled the one, right? It was like, all right, you got a number two star. They still need a stretch big. They still need another ball handler. Like, they still have some needs. And if you're doing this, if you just basically added a 35-year-old to your senior, you know, your senior citizen squad, you might as well go all in, right?
You got Steph about to be 37 in a couple weeks, right? You got Draymond at 35. You got Jimmy 35. You might as well be, you know what I'm saying? You might as well be the old man. This is like New Edition getting together and doing a concert, right? This is like... But if you're going to do it, you might as well lean in and get a squad, right? So it's going to be tough.
I don't know if they can emotionally handle losing Wiggins, Loong, and GP too, but I don't think they're done. I think there's still some other things to do. I don't expect it to be Jonathan Kaminga, but I do think that they probably got another one left in them.
All right. Well, Marcus Thompson, go and read him at The Athletic. Marcus, thank you very much and look forward to seeing your first Jimmy Butler feature.
Should be great. Big face coffee. I can't wait.
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Chapter 5: What does this trade mean for the Miami Heat?
For what it was, exactly, exactly. And from what I know about Andrew Wiggins, especially when it came to the role that he played at the Golden State Warriors, he's going to do whatever the team needs.
Mm-hmm.
He is a Swiss Army knife type of player. He will do whatever it is. If he can't score, he'll defend. If he can't distribute, he'll rebound. Like, it doesn't matter. And so having someone like that alongside of Tyler Hero, alongside of Khalil Ware, and of Bam Adebayo, yeah, this team just got some juice.
Let's talk about some of these other trades that came down before Jimmy Butler. The Wizards. Making some deals. They signed Jonas Valanciunas last summer to a deal that just was perfect to be traded. And what do you know? They trade him to the Sacramento Kings for Sidi Sissoko and two second-round picks. Number one, this is a good deal for the Wizards. They pick up a young player. Try them out.
They're actually a French guy, which is great.
Apparently they're waving Sissoko. Oh, no. There's a lot of moving parts here, man. I'm sorry. But you know what? I did have a funny stat here. If they kept City Sissoko, they would have had 20% of all French players in the NBA.
Wow.
Missed opportunity.
But they pick up a couple of seconds for Jonas Valanciunas, which is a guy obviously not in their future plans. But for the Kings, hey, this is a pretty good pickup. They're going to have some rebounding.
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Chapter 6: Are there more trades expected before the deadline?
Yes, absolutely. On the outside and the inside, you've got people that are capable of playing their positions. They don't go outside of themselves. They're definitely capable of doing that. But what's exciting, I think, if anything, last time we talked about this Kings team, we were worried about what? Defense.
Defense, yeah.
And now, let's be real. The Matador defense that's on the outside has not been solved for. But what have you found? A second line that's pretty darn solid in Jonas Valjunas and DeMontis Sabonis. I think that Jonas might help elevate DeMontis.
Look, it's the concept of like, it's good to be big in the NBA.
Correct. If you've got the two of them out there. If you got the two of them out there, of course, you may not stop everything, but you're definitely going to defer some folks, right? People are going to think twice before they go into the paint when you got both of those bodies down there. So I think that helps them a little bit on the defensive end.
But yeah, offensively, man, it's going to be a highlight show up in SAC.
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Chapter 7: What are the potential long-term effects of this trade?
Yeah. All guys will tell you, you know, rebounding is a part of defense too. So that'll help. I mean, and when you think about long rebounds, I mean, Damanis Sabonis is actually one of the best rebounders in the league. And Jonas Valanciunas is an offensive rebounder. Excellent. And think about those kickout threes they're going to get on offensive rebounds from both those guys.
I think, you know, second chance points for them is going to be a huge key if they're going to make the play in, which it seems like that's what they're gunning for. We also got a trade.
Spoken like a true coach, Dave.
Yeah, there you go. We got a trade first thing this morning. And, you know, this one's a little bit bittersweet because Chris Middleton is no longer with the Milwaukee Bucks. He got sent to the Washington Wizards for Kyle Kuzma. Look, talent-wise, this is not an upgrade for the Bucs. I mean, Middleton, obviously, he's got his health problems. But they are going to save some money.
The Bucs are saving a little bit of money. And you can envision a world in which Kuzma maybe gives them a little bit more this year just because he's healthy.
So they gave up a pick swap in 2028, and they gave up A.J. Johnson, who they just drafted. So it's basically two first-round picks plus Chris Middleton just to be able to get off of Middleton's contract and take on Kuzma and said – they do shed salary, like you said, which is cool. That's fine.
But, man, is it really a heartbreaking story that this is the way Chris Middleton's career and tenure in Milwaukee ends because this guy has been there from the start – him and Giannis together developing both guys.
I mean, Middleton was a guy who was in the G League and then worked his way into the squad and became a guy who was dominating against the Hawks in the conference finals for them to punch their way to the finals. And so you think about all these stories of how he got to the level that he is. Really unfortunate, man.
Really unfortunate that the way it goes is like he's being demoted to the Washington Wizards. It's tough.
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