Warriors Prefer $60 Million Former All-Star Over Jimmy Butler: Report

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Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat is guarded by Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors.

The Golden State Warriors would rather trade for Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vučević than Miami Heat’s disgruntled star Jimmy Butler, The Athletic reported on January 4.

“Nikola Vučević has actually emerged as the more discussed Warriors’ trade target, according to team and league sources. The front office and coaching staff have acknowledged back to training camp this team’s need for a true stretch center, something [Stephen] Curry has never really had,” the report said.

The 34-year-old Bulls center is having the best 3-point shooting season of his career, hitting a remarkable 44% from behind the arc while averaging 20.3 points and 10.1 rebounds. However, Vučević’s defense leaves much to be desired.

But according to The Athletic report, the Warriors, in theory, could protect Vučević on the defensive end with Draymond Green‘s presence “while opening up offensive space” for Curry and their pair of wings — Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga.

Another factor in the Warriors’ preference for Vučević is the trade cost, the report added. Whereas a Butler trade would force them to give up Wiggins and Kuminga because of his $48.7 million salary, Vučević is only making less than half of it.

The Warriors could, in theory, stack up players not named Wiggins or Kuminga, and attach a draft capital to acquire the Montenegrin center.

Vučević is due for $20 million this season and owed $21.4 million next season as part of his three-year, $60 million extension he signed in 2023.

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Bulls are “said to be seeking a first-round pick” for the 34-year-old former All-Star center.

Warriors’ Competitors for Nikola Vučević

The Warriors, however, aren’t alone in the Vučević trade market. They are just one of the four teams interested in the Bulls stretch center, according to Clutchpoints’ Brett Siegel.

“The Pistons previously showed interest in [Zach] LaVine over the offseason, but it is not expected that these talks will reignite. Vucevic, on the other hand, is drawing interest from the Warriors, Lakers, Pelicans, and Pistons, sources said. Several other teams may very well emerge as suitors for Vucevic ahead of the trade deadline given his production and experience,” Siegel wrote.

However, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps has reported that “sources across the league also don’t expect much interest in trading for [Vučević].”

Bontemps noted that there’s “some reasonable skepticism that those high-water marks will hold up as the season progresses” because of “the fact that Vučević struggles defensively and is owed another $20 million next year.”

Behind Nikola Vučević’s Remarkable 3-Point Improvement

Vučević’s near double-double average is expected from the Montenegrin center. However, what is surprising is his efficiency from the 3-point line.

Vučević is making 2.1 3-pointers per game out of 4.8 attempts, which is a career-high if he can sustain it. Behind this remarkable improvement is Vučević’s offseason training, which focused on his outside shooting as he adjusts to the modern NBA.

“I worked on it a lot over the summer, trying to see if there was something as far as my mechanics that I didn’t do well, or what was going on from that standpoint,” Vučević told Substack’s NBA insider Marc Stein in September. “I think there are some things that I could have done better, so I worked on it, a lot of reps as always. I’m sure at some point last year I was also overthinking shots and so, shots that I would normally make, when you start thinking too much, you start missing those as well.”

Vučević revealed he worked with former Suns assistant coach Nenad Trajković in the offseason in Montenegro to improve his shooting mechanics.