Butler injury likely closes Stephen Curry’s championship window with Warriors

Cbssports reports that Jimmy Butler’s torn ACL, which the outlet says ended the Warriors’ season, has prompted the argument that Stephen Curry’s window to win a fifth title with Golden State has almost certainly shut.

The piece lays out potential fixes but calls them unlikely. Trading Butler for players such as Joel Embiid or Anthony Davis faces major hurdles: Embiid’s escalating salaries ($59.5 million next season, $64.3 million the following season and $69 million in 2028–29) and durability concerns, and Davis’s own health and fit issues. The author notes Lauri Markkanen is the only trade that might realistically keep the window open, but it would cost the Warriors everything and still feels improbable.

The article argues the only other way for Curry to pursue another ring would be with a different franchise, a move the author says would only happen if Curry asked or the return set up the team’s next decade. Until such a scenario materializes, the piece concludes, and despite possible deadline tinkering, it feels likely that Curry is done chasing championships with the Warriors following Butler’s injury.

Key Topics

Sports, Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors, Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis