Talking to reporters before the Golden State Warriors’ game against the Toronto Raptors — and one night after the tragic ACL injury that befell Jimmy Butler, ending his season prematurely — Mike Dunleavy stated that he has no plans to trade Jimmy Butler’s contract before the February 6 trade deadline.
“I don’t envision that,” Dunleavy said. “Now that you’ve brought it up, I’d say my vision for him is to give us a boost next year the same way he did last year when he arrived.”
This differs the approach the Warriors took with De’Anthony Melton last season. Melton, who tore his ACL after playing only six games with the Warriors, was part of the trade package sent to Brooklyn for Dennis Schröder. Melton was then re-signed in the offseason, during the late stages of his ACL rehabilitation. If Dunleavy is to be believed, the Warriors are taking a different approach by keeping Butler on their books and hoping he can return next year to contribute — shutting down hopes that Butler’s contract could be used to quickly pivot toward contributory players who could give the Warriors a shot at playoff contention this season.
“At his age, to have the year he’s had is impressive,” Dunleavy said. “I think he’s got a style of game that can play for a long time with his skill, his physicality, his mind for the game. So, I guess my vision for him is him returning at some point between now and this time next year.”
Mike Dunleavy said he does not envision he will trade Jimmy Butler’s contract and believes Butler will rehab and return to help the team at some point next season pic.twitter.com/FjU1xzDnb6
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) January 21, 2026
Butler is owed $54.1 million this season and $56.8 million next season, the final year of his contract before hitting free agency. Butler’s contract might be more of an attractive trade piece next season for teams looking for expiring contracts. But at such a high price, it still could give teams pause.
As has been extensively reported, Dunleavy stated that they are not willing to give up their trove of draft picks unless it is for a big name.
“If we’re talking about trading draft picks that will be going out when Steph isn’t here, it’s going to have to be a player that we think we’ll be getting back that is going to be here when those picks are going out,” Dunleavy said. “That player’s going to have to be pretty impactful…. But if there’s a great player to be had, we’ve got everything in the war chest that we would be willing to use.”
