Warriors reportedly not among teams pursuing Jimmy Butler trade

The Miami Heat have suspended Jimmy Butler for seven games while they seek a trade to move on from the unhappy former All-Star.

The Golden State Warriors are looking for a two-way star player that they can put next to Stephen Curry to take some of the shot creation load off of him and help this team chase one more ring during the Curry/Draymond Green era.

That seems like a natural fit, but the Warriors are not seriously pursuing Butler, according to Anthony Slater, Sam Amick, and Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic.

Yet according to a source close to Butler, the Warriors are not currently seen as a viable option and there have been no substantive talks or traction to get any type of deal done. Butler’s history and reputation is as a premium two-way perimeter player — which the Warriors could use. Some credence exists to the idea that his midrange repertoire and defensive prowess could elevate the Warriors into that next tier of playoff threat. But Butler’s age and injury history makes him a risky choice. His price tag makes him an untenable option.

Those are the situations that make any Butler trade difficult.

It starts with Butler’s salary. He is making $48.8 million this season, with a player option for $52.4 million next season. Last summer, Butler wanted a two-year extension for the max of $113 million — or at least above $100 million — but Pat Riley publicly and emphatically shot that idea down, saying the team wants to invest in players it knows will be healthy enough to play (Butler had just missed the Heat’s first-round playoff series against the Celtics).

Any team that gives up real assets to trade for Butler will want to re-sign him, and that price tag at age 35 for a player with Butler’s lengthy injury history gives teams pause.

That salary also makes any trade of Butler difficult because of this CBA’s luxury tax aprons and the restrictions that come with them. Because Miami is over the first tax apron, it cannot take $1 more back in a trade than it sends out. The Warriors are bumping up against a tax apron, and constructing a trade would be difficult. (For example, a trade that works under the cap rules is Andrew Wiggins, Gary Payton II, Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Podziemski, and Lindy Waters III, plus picks for Butler — that is a lot of talent and depth out the door for one oft-injured player).

On top of all that, Butler’s latest trade demand and this disruption in Miami — a pattern we have seen before from Butler in Minnesota — lowers his trade value because the Warriors aren’t sure he would fit their culture. Other teams are asking the same question (if you’re Houston, with a good and growing young core, is this the locker room influence you want?).

Miami wants to trade Butler as soon as possible, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports. But there are skeptics around the league that Miami will find anything close to a fair trade for Butler in the next month before the Feb. 6 trade deadline. And Pat Riley isn’t going to make a bad trade for the Heat just to make one.

Whatever happens, don’t expect Golden State to be part of it.