On Monday night, the Golden State Warriors’ seven-game winning streak came to an end at the hands of the Nikola Jokic-less Denver Nuggets, 114-105. The Warriors had all of their key guys except for Brandin Podziemski, and yet they couldn’t extend their winning streak, unable to overcome a rough 6-21 shooting night from Stephen Curry, who also turned the ball over seven times to further compound the Dubs’ issues.
This was a rather uncharacteristic off night from Curry, who’s been playing excellent basketball especially after the Warriors brought in Jimmy Butler via trade. Head coach Steve Kerr said that this poor performance was the result of fatigue that piled up for the Warriors star.
Nevertheless, for Butler, he feels like it’s his and the rest of the Warriors squad’s job to pick up the slack when Curry isn’t at his best.
“It’s okay to be tired. That’s on myself and that’s on us as a unit to pick up the slack for him,” Butler said. “As [much as] everybody wants to think that he’s superhuman, he’s not. He is our leader, and we must protect him at all times. That’s on myself for sure. But everybody else [has] to make sure that we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing to give him a break.”
For Butler, the Warriors’ point of improvements moving forward is clear; they must clean up their execution so they don’t put themselves on the backfoot, reducing the burden on Curry’s shoulders in the process.
“Make sure we don’t turn the ball over, one. Make sure we get a good shot on goal. Execute. Whenever you execute and get the ball where it needs to go, that’s my job more than anybody’s. And maybe Dray’s. [Then we make Steph’s] life easier,” Butler added.
Warriors to lean in strength in numbers
Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler III (10) drives to the net against the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter at Chase Center.
The Warriors have always prided themselves on having quality depth, and the Jimmy Butler trade has restored so much balance to the team, allowing Steve Kerr to make the most out of the weapons they have at their disposal.
At the end of the day, Stephen Curry is still the catalyst of this Warriors squad. They can only go as far as he can take them. But as the Dubs jockey for positioning in the Western Conference standings, Curry will require the help of everybody so they can avoid the play-in tournament altogether. And perhaps this test will come as soon as tomorrow, as Curry is facing the possibility of being given the night off in their Tuesday night game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
