Why Butler’s eye-opening Warriors impact is not exaggerated

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Why Butler’s eye-opening Warriors impact is not exaggerated originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Praise of Jimmy Butler’s impact on the Warriors has been unceasing, over the top, lavish to the point of excess. Yet it is not exaggerated.

It’s February, a full two months before the NBA postseason, and they’re already getting “Playoff Jimmy.” Not only has he been a wonder drug for the benign mediocrity that had become chronic, but he’s also driving the team through a vigorous recovery and rehabilitation.

The gift bestowed upon the Warriors by general manager Mike Dunleavy, CEO Joe Lacob and the rest of the front office is providing everything they could have hoped.

Golden State opened the homestretch of the season Friday night with a blowout win at Sacramento and followed up Sunday afternoon at Chase Center by achieving their first three-game win streak since November with a 126-102 thumping of the Dallas Mavericks.

“It was an important shift,” coach Steve Kerr, referring to the addition of Butler, told media at Chase. “The trade itself . . . we needed it. We felt it. We were kind of treading water. We couldn’t get any traction in the season, and Mike sensed it and made the move. And you can feel the shift.”

This was Butler’s home debut, and the thunderous ovation he received from the sellout crowd was richly earned. The Warriors are 5-1 since he arrived, and an examination of the numbers within those six games reveals numerous positive changes, some of which defy logic.

Through 51 games, they were 18th in the NBA in offensive rating. They’re sixth over their last six games. They were, pre-Jimmy, 10th in defensive rating. Post-Jimmy, they’re fifth. They were ninth in assists per game pre-Jimmy; they’re third post-Jimmy. They were eighth in assist-to-turnover ratio; they’re third post-Jimmy. They were ninth in steals pre-Jimmy; they’re second post-Jimmy. They were 12th in fewest turnovers; they’re fifth post-Jimmy.

Everybody on the roster, from Stephen Curry and Draymond Green to Brandin Podziemski and Moses Moody to Buddy Hield and Quinten Post is reaping the…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/why-butlers-eye-opening-warriors-075116435.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2025-02-24 07:51:00

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