Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler on Feb. 27, 2025. / Anthony Slater, The Athletic / X / Screensho
Newly minted Golden State Warriors star Jimmy Butler put up a modest effort during Thursday night’s win over the Orlando Magic, but the real headline performance was that of guard Steph Curry, who dropped an awe-inspiring 56 points in his best game of the season.
Butler, who was officially traded to Golden State on Feb. 6, has only played eight games with the Dubs, but he seems to be having a good time, especially as it involves hooping with a shooter as legendary as Curry.
After Thursday’s contest, the forward described Curry’s game as “fun to watch,” and said that, in his short time with No. 30, he has learned that you’re “never out of any game,” though “that goes for everybody in this locker room.”
His best quote, however, came later, when Butler was asked whether he is ever shocked by Curry’s prowess in moments like these. To that, he had a very honest, but quite frankly very true response.
“Are there times where you look at what he does and think, ‘S—, that’s amazing’?” a reporter asked.
“Uh, no because he’s been doing it for so long now,” Butler responded. “In a weird way, isn’t it kind of expected by now? … You’re kind of like, ‘Man, I know this is gonna happen.’ And then when it doesn’t, you’re like, ‘Damn. He only ended with 40.’ You know what I mean? But like I said, when he gets going like that, it’s a big energy boost for everybody in this locker room. It makes everybody want to be great, especially on the defensive side of the floor so we can get the ball back and watch him go do something incredible on the offensive side of it.”
Jimmy Butler full interview on Steph Curry’s 56-point night“It makes everyone want to be great on the defensive side, so we can get him the ball back and watch him do something incredible.”
“In a weird way, isn’t it kind of expected by now?” pic.twitter.com/gUeE2BNhQJ
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 28, 2025
The Warriors’ front office brought Butler to San Francisco to ease and share some of Curry’s load. So far, he’s done well; he’s put up more than 15 points in six of his last eight games. But when Steph has a game like the one he had Thursday, you almost have to wonder why anyone thought he needed help in the first place.
