The Golden State Warriors are somehow still enjoying a period of contention headlined by some franchise cornerstones, and with newcomer Jimmy Butler now in the fold, the franchise may have a shot to earn another championship banner this season.
The aging, battle-tested Warriors just survived a play-in clash against a much younger Memphis Grizzlies squad to officially clinch a playoff spot. Now, the Warriors will have to face another team that’s much younger and less proven than them in the Houston Rockets.
While younger teams would surely love nothing more than to send the Warriors packing, Butler said he embraces the challenge.
“I love having a target on my back,” Butler said to The Athletic when asked about having to keep the younger contenders at bay. “I think I’ve had it the last couple of years over in the East, and (the Warriors) are gonna always have it, until 30 (Stephen Curry) and 23 (Draymond Green) are gone out this motherf—–.
“They’re always gonna be the squad to beat. Everybody always fears them. Everybody always knows that they’re not out of any game, out of any series, and I love to be a part of it. I ain’t scared of nobody. You know me. I’m not scared of nobody. I know what I’m capable of. Like I always say, now is the time to show it, but I know what they’re capable of more than anything. When you’ve got some hellified ballers in there that are confident, that accept their role, and they do whatever we ask them to do to win, man, that’s hard to beat. That’s very hard to beat.”
The Warriors and Grizzlies had a thrilling battle on Tuesday, and Butler did his part to get Golden State a win. He dropped a whopping 38 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals while shooting 12-for-20 from the field, 2-for-4 from deep and 12-for-18 from the line.
Curry was also dominant, finishing with 37 points, eight rebounds, four assists and one steal. He went 9-for-22 from the field, 6-for-13 from long range and 13-for-13 from the stripe.
Green, for his part, turned in a textbook Green performance, as he stuffed the stat sheet with four points, six rebounds, 10 assists, three steals and one block before fouling out.
Now, the Warriors, who have been fantastic ever since trading for Butler, are going to have a chance to make a deep playoff run. In the first round of the playoffs, they’re going to have to deal with a Rockets team that won 52 games during the regular season, but Golden State is currently favored to come out on top in the series.
Curry and Green have helped the Warriors win four championships already, with the first one coming in 2015 and the most recent one coming in 2022. It’s incredible that they still have Golden State in the title conversation after so many years, but Butler also deserves credit for helping the Warriors turn their season around.
Golden State, because of its history, will indeed have a target on its back in the playoffs. But if everyone on the team can adopt the same mindset as Butler, the Warriors should have a chance to navigate the challenge and perhaps even turn it into a mental advantage.
