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Par Mathieu Seguin | Rédacteur sport
Jimmy Butler may be a welcome addition to the Warriors’ roster, but his arrival was far from a foregone conclusion. The franchise originally wanted Kevin Durant, but the player simply refused. Steve Kerr reflects on this episode.
While the Warriors finished the season strong, their run came to a halt against the Wolves, not least because of Stephen Curry’s injury. Frustrating for this organization, but the confidence is real for 2026, which is why the Chief, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green will return to achieve their goal. But it’s far from done.
The fact remains that with Butler, the Dubs got exactly what they wanted. A player capable of devoting himself to the team and involved in all areas of the game, while making Curry’s life a little easier on the floor. And yet, at the February deadline, Golden State really wanted Kevin Durant back. But to no avail.
Steve Kerr reflects on the Warriors’ failure
A deal was close with the Suns and Heat according to some insiders, with a major trade with 3 franchises. The goal was to get KD back for the Warriors, but upon learning that the negotiations were going to succeed, the star said no. Note that Durant had no right of veto, but Golden State simply respected his wishes.
Without it, Durant could have become a Warriors player. He probably wouldn’t have been happy, but the player technically had no say in the matter. In a recent interview, Kerr went back over this episode and his interaction with Mike Dunleavy Jr. Butler’s name as an alternative quickly caught on internally.
Steve Kerr : “I think it’s well documented that we were trying to get Kevin Durant, but that didn’t happen. And after that, Mike [Dunleavy] calls me and says, ‘I think we’re going to trade for Jimmy Butler, I’m going to vouch for him. Guy’s a gamer, hell of a player, and I think that’s gonna work.’ And I said, ‘Great, let’s do it.’ We needed a change.”
And this change has worked wonders for the Warriors, who have made progress in all areas and were able to dream of the title for a few weeks. No championship in the end, but we can already count on them to do it again in 2026. Just goes to show, sometimes it doesn’t come down to much.
