A fatal mistake the Warriors must fix at the 2025 NBA trade deadline

It wasn’t long ago Golden State Warriors began the 2024-25 season with a hot 12-3 start. Fast forward to today, however, and the team is only sitting as the ninth seed in the Western Conference with a mediocre 19-18 record.

By now, Warriors fans and the front office should have realized that this team in its current state is not enough to win it all. As a result, some changes need to be made to address the glaring holes in the roster. Among the roster’s biggest problems, the Warriors they must fix the lack of offensive help around Stephen Curry.

Fortunately, the Bay Area team has a great chance of doing just that. With plenty of trade assets at their disposal, it’s inevitable that the front office will be aggressive as the trade deadline approaches. Moreover, with availability potential superstars like Jimmy Butlerthe front office needs to pull the trigger.

Young people fail to make the leap

The main reason the Warriors deflated in the current 2024-25 season is the lack of help around Curry. There were expectations that Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski and Jonathan Cumminga would make the jump. However, they are not playing up to par. After a hot start, Moody is allowing just 8.0 points per game on 44% shooting from the field overall. It doesn’t help that he suffered a minor knee injurybased on a report from Sports Illustrated.

On the other hand, Podziemski was the most disappointing. He is going through a sophomore slump, averaging just 8.0 points per outing while hitting just 40.4% of his shots from the field and 29.5% from beyond the arc. His numbers were a slight drop from his stellar rookie season.

Kuminga was a bright spot among the youth. He is averaging a career-best 16.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Unfortunately, a serious ankle sprain will sideline the 6-foot-8 forward for several weeks, putting his supposed breakout season in jeopardy.

At the beginning of the season, the Warriors counted on strengthening their youth. However, since they have been disappointed, the offensive load for Curry has been too much to carry.

The Warriors were hit with an injury bug

Aside from Kuminga’s ankle injury and Moody’s patellar tendinopathy knee, the Warriors have dealt with all kinds of injury problems. Earlier in the season, the team already lost the services of defensive leader DeAnthony Melton, who they acquired during the offseason. The absence of his defense left a glaring hole in the Warriors’ rotation, which likely played a role in the smoldering of their hot start to the regular season. Although they tried to replace Melton by trading him with Schroeder, the German guard has yet to fully adjust to the Warriors’ system.

Another key player who got injured was Lindy Waters. Before the awkward landing, Waters was shooting at a 47% clip from downtown. But after returning from injury, the 6-foot-6 guard is shooting just 33 percent for the season.

Moreover, the biggest injury hit the Warriors at the wrong time. Curry allegedly was dealing with a knee injuryaccording to Sports Illustrated. While he’s still the best scorer in the world, his usage could affect the NBA Finals MVP in 2022. At 36, a weak supporting cast won’t be enough for the Warriors, especially when he’s less than 100% right now.

In fact, they were quickly demoted from legitimate Western Conference contenders to play-in contenders as they slipped to the ninth seed. It’s not an ideal situation for a team aiming for a championship.

Potential trade for Jimmy Butler

Warriors get: Jimmy Butler ($48.8 million)

Winners: Andrew Wiggins ($26.3 million), Dennis Schroder ($13 million), Jonathan Cummings ($7.6 million)

The option the Warriors can do to salvage their championship hopes is to finally land a third star. With Jimmy Butler becoming disaffected in Miami, the Warriors appear to have a golden opportunity to address their pursuit of a star and help on offense. Couple that with the young assets of the Warriors, who can certainly attract a rebuilding team like the Heat, it looks like a win for both teams.

The addition of Butler should immediately lift the Warriors back into title contention. In the 2024-25 season, Butler averaged 17.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game. Pairing him alongside the best scorer in the world should be an interesting sight. But more importantly, it should easily lighten the load for Curry.

On the other hand, Miami will get a big future building block in Kuminga. The 6-foot-8 forward easily fits into the Heat’s timeline. Furthermore, solid veterans like Wiggins and Schroeder should be solid rotation pieces to ease the franchise’s transition.