“Before Butler arrived, Green had a standing request of the team’s front office that he deemed vital to their renaissance: Go get another “a–hole,” as one team source described it,” the two wrote. “Another fiery, two-way talent like him who would say what needed to be said at all times and compete on the knife’s edge on both ends of the floor.”

Adding Butler was a risk for Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. This season, Butler demanded his way out of South Beach after having a soured relationship with Miami Heat executive Pat Riley.