Why Jimmy Butler and mediocrity are a bad combination for the Warriors

SAN FRANCISCO – Steve Kerr, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are acutely aware that the buzz around the Warriors is becoming a roar. They know this has been a most exasperating season and they’ve won enough rings to know this is not it – and, at this rate, won’t be it.Jimmy Butler III, aching for a ring, also knows this is not it. As the driving force of two underdog Miami teams that reached the NBA Finals, he knows of habits that ensure success and habits that prevent it.From the instant Butler was acquired by the Warriors last February and signed his &dollar;111 million contract extension, he announced his goal. He wants to win. Not Player of the Week, or Player of the Month or votes for the All-Star team. And certainly not a mere 13 of 27 games, which is what the Warriors have done over the first two months.He wants the ring that puts a crown on his Hall of Fame career.As the Warriors stagger about, Butler is biting his tongue and trying to play the role of the good soldier. Witness the time and effort he puts into Jonathan Kuminga (only to see him sit on the bench the last three games). Jimmy wants no part of the reputation that followed him to the Bay; some of those left on the other side of bridges he burned insist he is fabulous during the “honeymoon” phase but ultimately will become discontented.But as the Warriors and their dizzying variety of lineups and rotations go nowhere, with wins rarer than anyone accepts, no member of the Warriors – players, coaches, front office – is content. CEO Joe Lacob expressed his frustration in an email reply to a dissatisfied fan. Kerr, Curry and Green are not hiding their irritation. And they all own the kind of jewelry Butler seeks.It is understandable if it is difficult for Butler, 36 years old and on his fifth NBA team, to ride the storm. Let’s be clear: Jimmy has not said so, at least not publicly. But his desire to win runs so deep that mediocrity gnaws at his ethos.Consider the words of Butler during a “Dubs Talk” podcast recording on Dec. 1: “If it’s about winning — if it’s about winning it, the championship – I’m all for it. If it’s not, and there are any other agendas, y’all won’t like it. Because I don’t care. I’m literally just here to win. That’s it. I don’t care about anything else.”Consider the phrase “y’all won’t like it” a euphemism for “Do not expect joy from me if losing becomes a habit.”It is conceivable that Butler finding it difficult to stomach a team that can’t find its way out of the NBA swamp. To care about a team that has spent most of the past month in eighth place in the Western Conference. To care, dare we say, about the urges of a coach that, eight weeks into the season acknowledges he needs to be better at maximizing Jimmy’s best assets.“I’ve got to find a way to get him more into the groove of the game,” Kerr conceded Sunday after Butler took 11 shots as Portland came back to hang a 136-131 loss on Golden State. “Eleven shots? I don’t really consider Jimmy’s game to be dependent on how many shots he gets. But we do need his scoring. We do need his playmaking.“We did a better job last year of putting him in position to attack and create shots for people. We need to get back to that type of control of the game where we’re going to him in the half court, especially when Steph’s out. Going to him in the half court, taking care of the ball, turning the other team over, controlling the game. And we’re not there.“We’ve had a few moments during the season, but we’re not able to consistently put the ball in Jimmy’s hands and let him control games like we did at the end of last year.”Butler is playing well, but his impact is not up to his high standard. The standard that put his name on MVP ballots in three different seasons. The standard that made Jimmy “Himmy.”The standard that would be a huge step toward lifting the Warriors out of the quagmire and, perhaps, into a top-six team in the West.As a primary ballhandler, Green also takes some of the blame for games when Butler doesn’t routinely get the ball on offense – particularly when Curry is off the floor.“I’ve got to do a better job of that,” Green said in Portland. “And then, as I do a better job with that, I also need Jimmy to be more aggressive and demonstrative and go take the ball or come get the ball or say exactly where he wants the ball.“And he will. You know he doesn’t shy away from that. We’re putting it together. This is game 27. Nobody’s panicking.”Plenty of fans are panicking, but that’s typical and they don’t dictate outcomes. Kerr, Curry and Green are not panicking, partly because they believe the best Jimmy is yet to come.The best Jimmy ought to be a priority for Kerr, the Warriors and Butler. It’s essential for the current roster, clearly imperfect, to reach its potential. No one on the payroll wants that more than Butler.Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast

Why Jimmy Butler and mediocrity are a bad combination for the Warriors

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