The Golden State Warriors made a splash a year ago when they landed Jimmy Butler in a deal from the Miami Heat, and following his arrival, the team was absolutely red-hot. As a result, they entered 2025–26 believing they were genuine contenders in the Western Conference, even up against the might of teams like Denver and Oklahoma City.
To become true contenders, however, this is a team that needed to stay fully healthy and catch plenty of breaks, but unfortunately, things changed in a big way on Monday. During their massive victory over the Miami Heat, the team saw superstar Jimmy Butler go down clutching his knee, with many fearing the worst as a result of how bad things looked.
On Tuesday, it was officially confirmed by ESPN's Shams Charania that Butler will now miss the entirety of the 2025–26 season, as it was revealed that he tore his ACL.
This is a brutal loss for the Warriors and an even more brutal blow for Butler, who, at 36 years of age, will now have to work his way back following the biggest injury of his career to date.
Despite the injury, the Warriors are still currently 25–19 on the season on the back of six wins in their past seven games played, and with Jonathan Kuminga ready to step up, this team still has immense potential. Ultimately, though, this isn't how anyone in the Golden State wanted their season to go, with fans and players sending Butler their best as they all hope he can get back to 100% at some point in his career.
