Kerr: Andrew Wiggins '1 of My Favorite Players' After Warriors' Jimmy Butler Trade

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr reflected on the realities of the NBA after the team agreed to trade Andrew Wiggins to the Miami Heat in a sprawling deal that brings Jimmy Butler to the Bay Area.

ESPN's Shams Charania and Brian Windhorst reported Wednesday the Warriors are acquiring Butler from the Heat in a move that includes the Utah Jazz and Detroit Pistons.

Addressing the trade after Golden State's 131-128 loss to the Jazz, Kerr called Wiggins "one of my favorite players I've ever coached" and praised the veteran forward's contributions to the Warriors' 2022 championship.

"You develop these relationships with guys," he said. "They give you everything and commit to the team. They got families. Wigs just had a baby boy last week. Wigs is one of my favorite players I've ever coached. Just a beautiful soul, a wonderful human being. We don't hang that banner in '22 without him. Everything he brings, every single day, the laughter, the smile, the joy. Just a wonderful human being, so I'm gonna miss him."

It always seemed likely Golden State would make changes to maximize Stephen Curry's shrinking window, and eventually it became inevitable that the core trio of Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green would be broken up. That came to fruition when Thompson departed the Warriors in a sign-and-trade deal in the offseason, joining the Dallas Mavericks.

That left the Warriors with a few options. Chris Paul's contract made him either a natural trade chip in the pursuit of another star or a release candidate, given his contract was non-guaranteed. The Warriors went with the latter.

The team's young players, namely Jonathan Kuminga, also held value on the market. But if they were dealt, it was going to be as part of a package deal. Losing Kuminga wouldn't have been ideal.

Enter Wiggins, who is still in his prime at 29, has a moveable contract ($26.2 million in 2024-25, $28.2 million in 2025-26 and a $30.1 million player option in 2026-27) and is a solid player, albeit one who saw his role diminish in Golden State last season.

Wiggins averaged just 13.2 points per game and shot 35.8 percent from three. He was excellent to start his career in Golden State and was a key piece in the team's NBA title in the 2021-22 season, but that player didn't show up for the Dubs last season. He has been better this year, however (17.6 PPG).

It was time to shake up the core group around Curry and Wiggins was the next natural domino to fall.

With the Warriors involving themselves in the Butler saga, Wiggins made sense as one of the players to head back to Miami. He'll see a bigger offensive role with the Heat, pairing with Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro as Miami looks to fight its way into the playoffs.