Could Jimmy Butler give the Golden State Warriors one Last Dance?

 

                                             (Credit: Getty Images) 

The Golden State Warriors have won four NBA championships since drafting Stephen Curry back in 2009. They've gone from being a laughing stock to a dynasty. One of the few NBA franchises to make such a transformation. With Curry now at 37 years old, Klay Thompson traded to the Dallas Mavericks, and Draymond Green only a couple years behind Curry at 35, Father Time is catching up. He always does. 

To give them a push for one more title run, the Warriors made a trade to land Jimmy Butler from the Miami Heat, giving up Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson, and a protected first round pick. The Utah Jazz, Toronto Raptors, and Detroit Pistons also were involved to help facilitate the deal. 

In 20 games with the Warriors, Butler is averaging 17.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 1.3 assists per game. The Warriors are 16-4 in those games, turning them into one of the top teams in the Western Conference. They are currently 41-31 overall and 7th in the Western Conference, but if they keep this up with Butler, they got a legit chance to rise to as high as 4th with 10 games to go. 

If the Warriors do end up getting a top five seed in the Western Conference, it would be foolish to count them out. This is a team that has championship DNA and while he has never won an NBA championship before, Butler did lead the Heat to two NBA Finals appearances, so he knows what it takes to get there. Especially as an under-seeded team (5th seed in 2020 & 8th seed in 2023). 

At this point, it does feel like the stars could be aligning for one final championship run. Much like the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls team that Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was a player on. The Warriors have had many different eras during their dynastic run: One NBA championship before the Kevin Durant era, two with Durant, and one more post-Durant. If they could win a fifth title and have it be Jimmy Butler's first with him being the catalyst, that would be pretty special. 

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Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic has first 30-20-20 game in NBA history

 

                                            (Credit: Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images) 

On Friday night in a 149-141 overtime victory over the Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic became the first player in NBA history to have a 30-20-20 game (30 points, 20 rebounds, & 20 assists). Jokic actually slightly eclipsed that mark with 31 points, 21 rebounds, and 22 assists. Not to be ignored is the fact that he also had three steals and just four turnovers while shooting 13-22 (59.1%) from the field. Just an all-around brilliant performance that the NBA has never seen before. 

While he sometimes gets discounted a bit for not appearing to have out-of-this-world athleticism, Friday's performance reminded the basketball world that Nikola Jokic is truly an all-time great and one of the best big men in NBA history. As if leading the Denver Nuggets to an NBA championship didn't already hammer that home. We all knew Jokic was special, but still. One can't help but be in awe of what we saw. 

As far as which aspect of this performance is most impressive, the answer is simply all of it. In truth, any game with where you have 30+ points or 20+ rebounds or 20+ assists is a great night. But to do all three in one game? There's really no words that can perfectly capture just how special this was. All you can do is be in awe. 

I don't know where Jokic ranks among the NBA's greatest big men, but he's definitely in the conversation with guys like Shaquille O'Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon, Tim Duncan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Arvydas Sabonis, and Bill Russell. In many ways, he's kind of giving the NBA a heavy dose of what it would have been like to play against Sabonis in his prime. Due to being behind the Iron Curtain, Sabonis didn't get to play in the NBA until he started to enter the twilight years of his pro career, but Jokic has been able to play at the peak of his abilities and carry the torch that Sabonis never fully got to carry. 

It's really special that we get to watch Nikola Jokic in real-time. I'm sure when his career is over, we'll look back and feel like we didn't appreciate him enough. He really is the kind of guy that might only come around once, so we better appreciate him while we still can. 

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