This game was the reason why the Golden State Warriors traded Jimmy Butler. With Stephen Curry taking the night off to rest his sore back, the Warriors bounced back from a deflating loss to the Denver Nuggets to take down the Milwaukee Bucks, 104-93.
In a game with heavy playoff seeding implications, Butler willed himself to a “Playoff Jimmy” type of performance. He finished 24 points, eight rebounds, and 10 assists, along with a perfect 11-of-11 from the free throw line.
After the game, Steve Kerr was asked if he had to tell Butler to break out the ball-dominant playstyle.
“No. He just goes,” Kerr answered. “He’s been telling you guys when it’s time, he’ll do it. Tonight was his time.”
For Butler, it was a redemption kind of game. In the wake of the Nuggets loss, Butler took responsibility for Curry’s heavy fatigue.
He promised to “pick up the slack” for his “leader.” Butler stayed true to his word versus the Bucks by committing more to the on-ball scorer role and less to the playmaking facilitator role. Butler gave the Warriors enough juice on offense to outlast Milwaukee, exemplified by this deafening And-One jumper:
Jimmy Butler BURIES it for the 4-point play
pic.twitter.com/eHyXgVEbU0
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 19, 2025
In his post-game interview with NBC Sports Bay Area, Butler talked about balancing his aggressiveness as the Dubs’ primary scoring option in conjunction with setting up his teammates.
“In order to be aggressive, I had to be looking at the rim more. But to the best of my ability though, I really did try to find my teammates,” Butler explained, crediting the efforts of his teammates “I’m comfortable playing [in the post]. I like to pass more than I like to shoot the ball if you haven’t noticed by now. But with Steph out, I think that was a style of play we had to play in order to give ourselves a chance. We did that but I’ll be the first to admit, I want 30 back.”
It was those playmaking priorities Butler covets that saved the Warriors, with some help from Brandin Podziemski.
With the Dubs clinging to a 96-93 lead, Butler found Green rolling to the paint who then shoveled the ball to Podziemski for a much-needed three-pointer. On the next possession, Butler drew in the defense on his drive before dumping the ball to Gary Payton II for a dunker spot floater. And to cap off a game-sealing 8-0 run, Butler attacked the paint before finding Podz once again for a dagger three-pointer.
Podziemski finished with 17 points and 7 rebounds on four made threes in his return to the court. In the same postgame press conference, Kerr said he looked “strong” and played with “force and energy.”
Vintage Draymond Green stifles Giannis Antetokounmpo
While Butler carried the offensive burden, Draymond Green took on the monumental task of limiting the Greek Freak. As the primary defender on Antetokounmpo, Green held the two-time MVP to zero points. Zero points. When guarded by Green, Antetokounmpo was 0-6 from the field. He finished with only 20 points on six of 15 shooting.
Whether it was gapping Antetokounmpo in the paint or guarding him in the post, Green kept him from destroying the Warriors in the paint, one night removed from Aaron Gordon’s 38-point masterclass. In the same postgame press conference, Steve Kerr applauded Green’s vintage defensive performance.
“That defense on Giannis tonight was incredible. To hold him to five field goals, Draymond showed why he’s still one of the great defenders in the world and why he’s so important to winning,” Kerr said. “It wasn’t just the defense, it was the leadership, it was the energy. It was such a professional effort by our guys coming off [the Denver] loss… to put together a game that we really needed.”
Rotational question marks moving forward
The win wasn’t all bells and whistles. The Warriors blew a 14-point lead when the Bucks went on a 27-9 run in the third quarter. Ball security eluded the Dubs during this stretch, and the team finished with 18 turnovers. But a big part of the Bucks’ huge run was due to some strange five-man lineups.
There were also some major rotation question marks all game long until the fourth quarter. Kerr went twelve players deep into his bench. Some of those lineups looked great: the Podz-GP2-Hield-Butler-Green closing lineup won them the game.
But other lineups limited the Warriors’ spacing. Lineups featuring Jonathan Kuminga did not produce much success tonight as the young forward finished with a -10 plus/minus. He’s still finding his footing since returning from injury but he had a bad night versus the Bucks. He shot two of ten and picked up a frustration-flagrant foul during the Bucks’ third-quarter push.
With Curry set to return, Kerr will have to cut down the Warriors rotation. He’s facing the same problem he faced after the Dubs’ 12-3 start: too many options on the bench. And he’s going to have to figure it out fast. The Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Clippers are lurking at seven and eight. The Warriors cannot afford another loss like the one versus Denver.
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