We are exactly a week away from the regular season kick-off for the Golden State Warriors. Their matchup with the Lakers already has an injury issue, as LeBron James is set to be sidelined due to a sciatica issue. And now the Dub Nation had a scare of their own in terms of an update for Jimmy Butler. Playing the first two preseason games and missed the third one due to an ankle injury. But don’t worry, coach Steve Kerr shared the fortunate update.

ESPN’s Anthony Slater tweeted the news. “Jimmy Butler got an MRI on his ankle yesterday, per Kerr. “It was clean…We’re not concerned.” However, Butler will miss the second preseason game in a row against the Portland Trail Blazers after straining his ankle during a Friday team practice. At first, there were gray clouds over the veteran forward’s availability. Since the ankle was swollen, an MRI was done as a precautionary measure.

For now, the 6x All-Star could be back as soon as Friday for the last contest in the Warriors’ preseason slate. Even if he misses that encounter, the great news is that the ankle injury is a minor one, but there are other issues with the aging squad. Al Horford’s addition to the team is great, as the team wanted a rim protector. With his inclusion, the Golden State became the first team to have 4 starters above the age of 35. Al Horford is 39, alongside Steph Curry (37), Jimmy Butler (36), and Draymond Green (35).

Because of this, Steve Kerr admitted that fitting a starting lineup is “a little tricky”. The tricky part comes from other players being unavailable. Moses Moody suffered a calf injury and will miss not just tonight’s but the entire preseason. In fact, the injury struggles don’t end with the shooting guard, as Alex Toohey, De’Anthony Melton, and Seth Curry are also expected to miss Tuesday’s matchup for different reasons.

So far, Rookie Toohey has missed all the games because of undisclosed reasons. And according to ESPN, Stephen Curry’s brother is expected to miss tonight’s game due to a non-injury-related issue. Lastly, the 27-year-old Melton will miss the early portion of the 2025-26 NBA season as he continues his recovery from a devastating torn ACL after undergoing surgery last December.

That’s why the Jimmy Butler news is positive, as Kerr continues to have issues with the starting lineup.

Steve Kerr drops a candid confession as ESPN drops its prediction about the Golden State Warriors

Last season, Jimmy Butler made a significant impact in his 30 games with the Warriors, contributing to a 23-7 record and a 76.7% winning percentage. Only the Cavaliers (78.0%) and the Thunder (82.9%) bettered the record. An injury to Stephen Curry against the Wolves in the second round made them lose back-to-back games and ended their championship hopes. But ESPN is riding high on the team’s chances this year. In their projected Western Conference Standings and Win Totals, the reigning champions stood at the top, Oklahoma City Thunder — 59.2, followed by the Golden State Warriors — 56.1.

This should be good news for the Dub Nation. But their head coach is not so sure, as planning a starting 5 is not that straightforward. “But the starting lineup frankly is a little tricky for us, given the pieces and Al’s age.” Steve Kerr continued, “If Al were a little younger, he’d be in the starting lineup for sure. But if he’s gonna play limited minutes, it’s tougher to start him and finish the game. He’s not playing as many minutes as he would have a few years ago.”

This means, despite the big names and experience of Horford, Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Green, there is a chance that they don’t play the majority of games together. Which means the young guard Brandin Podziemski and veteran Buddy Hield will have an extended run. This is all in the assumption that there are no more injury concerns in the Golden State.