Warriors Announce Jimmy Butler Underwent Successful ACL Surgery

The Golden State Warriors’ season is effectively over. When Jimmy Butler went down with a torn ACL a few weeks ago, the writing was on the wall. The Warriors can be a decent team without Butler, but if they want any chance at competing for an NBA championship, they need him healthy. 

The Warriors announced Monday that Butler had finally gotten his surgery to fix his torn ACL. 

“Warriors forward Jimmy Butler III, who suffered a torn right anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) on January 19 against the Miami Heat, underwent successful surgery earlier on Monday in Los Angeles.

The surgery, a reconstruction of the torn ACL, was performed by Dr. Bert Mandelbaum. Butler III, who has missed the last nine (9) games, will be sidelined for the remainder of the 2025-26 season and will begin rehabilitation immediately. He is expected to make a full recovery, and an update on his progress will be provided early next season.”

It isn’t ideal that Butler waited weeks to get his surgery. That being said, Butler is a lot older than most people who are tearing their ACL, and he may have needed some extra time to prepare for the surgery. 

Still, the Warriors decided not to trade Butler at the deadline, and now they will have him injured on their roster, taking up a huge portion of their cap space. 

If Butler can make a full recovery and return to the Warriors around this time next season, there’s a chance that the Butler era in Golden State is still salvageable. Unfortunately, what is more likely is that Butler and Stephen Curry won’t be able to make a title run together, and their injuries over this season and last will just become another NBA “what if.”