Category: Basketball

Hield steps up in Butler's absence to help Warriors beat Rockets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – With Jimmy Butler unavailable to play Saturday and sitting courtside wearing a thick brown coat, the Warriors were desperate to find someone to step up and help fill the void.

Buddy Hield answered the call with his most productive game in nearly three weeks.

The veteran sharp-shooter came off the bench and scored 17 points, three shy of his career postseason best, to go with a game-high three steals and two assists in the Warriors’ 104-93 Game 3 win over the Houston Rockets at Chase Center.

“Robin was out tonight, so I had to step up,” Hield said, referencing the Batman-Robin duo of Stephen Curry and Butler. “I know Jimmy is out and I know what’s at stake. Just taking it possession by possession, learning.

“You’ve got to enjoy the moment and seize the moment. You can’t be shy when the opportunity comes. You have to be out there and be fiery and be free.”

Hield is anything but shy, especially on the court.

Heading into Saturday’s game he was second on the Warriors for made 3-pointers behind – surprise – Curry.

Hield is 16^th on the NBA’s all-time list, although his numbers have rocketed in recent seasons. Over the past six years, Hield has made the second-most 3-pointers (1,254) in the NBA behind Curry (1,563).

Against the Rockets, Hield made 5 of 11 3-point tries and shot 6 of 13 overall.

Buddy hits his third triple of the first half 👌pic.twitter.com/qa0XS2yWWv

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

When the Warriors fell behind by double digits midway through the second quarter, Hield got Golden State back in the game with a pair of threes and a driving layup that helped cut Houston’s lead to 49-46 at the break.

Steph gets the stop and finds Buddy 🙌pic.twitter.com/hXBskHlK3O

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

Because Butler was resting after suffering a hard fall earlier in the series, Houston spent much of the night blitzing their defense toward Curry. That left open spacing for the other Warriors players, and Hield made the Rockets pay.

“If they are going to send a trap or double-team or blitz a pick-and-roll, if I get off it [and] if we are spaced properly, Buddy is a guy that demands attention,” Curry explained. “If he has that little bit of daylight, he’s got to be able to take those and knock them down.”

The Warriors signed Hield in the offseason in essence to help make up for the loss of Klay Thompson after the one-time Splash Brother was traded to the Dallas Mavericks this past offseason.

Replacing one of the most popular players in franchise history is no easy task for any player, especially when the player being replaced is as beloved in the Bay as Thompson was.

Hield’s first season with Golden State started off optimistically. When he ran into a midseason shooting slump, some fans wondered whether the Warriors made a mistake by obtaining Hield as part of the multi-team sign-and-trade that landed Thompson with the Mavericks.

More games like Saturday’s are surely to alter a few of those pessimistic opinions.

“He’s a guy who is one of the best shooters in the league,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s always capable of making shots. Because of the constant blitzing of Steph, it opened up the floor and we finally figured it out, how to space the floor and get the ball in that blitz. [Hield] got some good looks and made some big shots.”

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Jimmy Butler epically trolls Buddy Hield on Instagram after Warriors' Game 3 win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Jimmy Butler never misses a chance to take a shot at Warriors teammate Buddy Hield.

Shortly after Steph Curry carried the Butler-less Warriors to an incredible 104-93 Game 3 win over the Houston Rockets on Saturday night at Chase Center, the injured Warriors forward took to Instagram to celebrate the victory.

Butler posted a video of the bat signal with Curry’s logo in it, but the caption was even better.

“thanks batman and team. excluding buddy.”

Jimmy’s IG post after tonight’s win 😂

(Wait for the caption 👀)

[via @jimmybutler/IG] pic.twitter.com/ULn3Abx963

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

While Butler missed the game as he recovers from a left pelvic contusion, Hield finished with 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field and was a plus-14 in 29 minutes.

But Hield did the thing Butler hates the most — dribble — and that got the 32-year-old in trouble on several occasions Saturday night.

Hield was credited with two turnovers, but it felt like more. At one point, Butler was coaching up Hield about his dribbling.

"keep dribbling. i'm not inviting you to slap bones again" pic.twitter.com/Kqa1gRp54b

— chano (@chanodesigns) April 27, 2025

Hield was asked about Butler’s coaching, and the playful shots continued.

“Terrible, terrible advice,” Hield told reporters. “Terrible advice. I was just tuning him out the whole time. Nah, he’s been good. He’s been positive. He’s telling me how to read drives, except that one time I got picked by Steven Adams, he’s giving me a look and I’m just like ‘Yo, don’t even talk about it.’ But he’s been good, just talking and just encouraging everybody.

“Especially when Draymond got a tech, he was letting everybody know that was good for our team. That’ll get us going. That was big. It changed the game for us.”

Butler and Hield have traded banter with each other ever since the former arrived via a blockbuster trade in early February.

And as long as the Warriors keep winning, the good times will keep rolling between Butler and Hield.

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What Butler told Hield during motivational pep talk in Warriors' win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The ongoing friendly feud between Buddy Hield and Jimmy Butler has become an endlessly entertaining side plot to the Warriors’ 2024-25 NBA season.

Though Butler did not play in the Warriors’ Game 3 win over the Houston Rockets on Saturday, that didn’t stop him from coaching up Hield from the Golden State bench.

Rockets center Steven Adams swiped the ball from Hield in the fourth quarter, leading to a fastbreak and drawn foul on the other end for the veteran big man — who isn’t known for his ability to defend in space.

Steven Adams CLAMPING in the 4th!

📺 HOU-GSW Game 3 on ABC pic.twitter.com/Tr0oz9HULk

— NBA (@NBA) April 27, 2025

This provided a perfect opportunity for Butler — whose disdain for Hield’s dribbling already is well-known — to rib and mentor his teammate simultaneously.

“He was talking about me getting my ball picked from Steven Adams,” Hield told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke after the game. “He was telling me, ‘Just go by him.’

“Me and him are always getting into it, though. He’s my big brother, so he’s good.”

During his postgame press conference, Hield added that Butler simply gave him a look, with the sharpshooter replying that he didn’t want to talk about it.

Of course, Hield immediately took the opportunity to tease his frenemy back when asked about Butler’s bench presence when he’s not playing.

“Terrible, terrible, terrible advice. I just was, like, tuning him out the whole time,” Hield joked, before offering a rare genuine compliment to Butler. “Nah, he’s being good. He’s being positive. He’s telling me how to read drives.”

Buddy and Jimmy are perfect frenemies 🤣 pic.twitter.com/xBhJXYyuqI

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

Saturday’s back-and-forth didn’t stop there, either (check out the caption).

With Butler expected to return to action for Game 4, expect even more hilarious — and perhaps constructive — interactions between these squabbling allies.

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GP2 serves as Warriors' varnish in shining Game 3 performance originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Gary Payton II’s father earned the nickname “The Glove” for the way he played defense throughout his Hall of Fame NBA career.

The younger Payton is deserving of his own unique nickname as well: Varnish. That’s because on a nightly basis Payton is all over the court, diving for loose balls, intercepting passes and making key plays at key times.

That was the case in Game 3 of the Warriors’ first-round NBA playoff matchup with the Houston Rockets.

Already recognized as one of the top two defenders on Golden State’s roster, Payton II turned the tables and became an offensive force during clutch time when he helped the Jimmy Butler-less Warriors pull out a 104-93 win on Saturday at Chase Center that gave the Warriors a 2-1 series lead.

“It’s huge,” Draymond Green said. “We know G is an incredible defender, but when he’s playing that way offensively, getting to the hole, finishing — he’s a great finisher around the basket — knocking his threes down … if you’re getting that type of two-way basketball from G, it really lifts this team and is just another threat that [opponents] have to deal with.”

When the Warriors got off to a somewhat sluggish start in the first half, Payton took only one shot while trying to focus primarily on defense.

That focus changed slightly in the second half, specifically the fourth quarter when Payton did the bulk of Golden State’s scoring. He scored 13 of the team’s 35 points in the final period and repeatedly made clutch plays on both ends of the floor.

Payton opened the fourth quarter with a reverse layup, then picked up a charging foul when he lowered his shoulder and ran through Rockets forward Dillon Brooks. Less than 30 seconds later, Payton knocked down an open corner 3-pointer.

GP2 gets the acrobatic layup to go 😮‍💨pic.twitter.com/U22lIXb7c1

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

Later in the quarter when Stephen Curry missed a step-back 3-pointer, Payton chased down the rebound and got fouled by Brooks, the sixth of the night for the Rockets villain.

For the icing on the cake, Payton raced to the rack backdoor for a reverse dunk that was the exclamation point on the win.

GP2 WITH THE DAGGER DUNK 💥pic.twitter.com/QwmBFx6pVb

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

“We’ve seen this. We’ve seen what Gary is capable of doing at the highest level,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said, referring to the impact Payton made during the Warriors’ run to the 2022 NBA championship. “He knew he didn’t have a great trip in Houston, didn’t play particularly well in either game.

“He was kind of due. He just made massive plays in the fourth quarter and helped us close the game.”

Basically, Payton shined like varnish.

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Draymond Green, Jalen Green trade barbs over incident after Warriors' Game 3 win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors’ first-round NBA playoff series against the Houston Rockets is as contentious as everyone predicted.

And the war of words carried over past the final buzzer in the Warriors’ 104-93 Game 3 win over the Rockets when Draymond Green and Jalen Green had to be separated as the teams left the court.

Did Draymond Green make a painting finger nails gesture at Jalen Green 💀 pic.twitter.com/DEzUMYwAty

— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) April 27, 2025

The Warriors forward brushed off the incident when asked about it by NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dalton Johnson after the game.

“Yeah, the game was over,” Draymond said. “Don’t matter.”

But the Rockets guard wasn’t as diplomatic, taking a direct shot at Draymond.

“Just talking,” Jalen told reporters after the game. “Steph [Curry] had a good game. The reason they won. Just talking. [Draymond] can’t really do much of anything else, so talking is his only way.”

Jalen Green on what was going on with him and Draymond Green arguing after the game:

"Just talking. He can't really do much of anything else, so talking is his only way." pic.twitter.com/mLExzRMShy

— ClutchFans (@clutchfans) April 27, 2025

Draymond wouldn’t confirm if he told Jalen to go paint his nails, as the video alludes to, and he wasn’t sure why the young Houston guard was so upset.

“I’m not sure what he took [umbrage] to,” Draymond told reporters. “But it was a good win for us.”

The Warriors and Rockets are teetering close to an explosion, and tensions will continue to rise as the series progresses.

Golden State and Houston players don’t like each other, so expect more fireworks over the next few games.

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Game 3 stat a good omen for Warriors winning series vs. Rockets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Steph Curry and the Warriors pulled out a 104-93 win over the Houston Rockets in Game 3 of their first-round NBA playoff series on Saturday at Chase Center.

That bodes very well for Golden State’s chance at advancing to the Western Conference semifinals, as NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dalton Johnson pointed out after the game — and they did it without the Robin to Curry’s Batman, Jimmy Butler.

The Game 3 winner when a series is tied 1-1 in a best-of-seven series has gone on to win 74.2% of the time

Huge win for the Warriors without Jimmy Butler

— Dalton Johnson (@DaltonJ_Johnson) April 27, 2025

Those are astronomical chances in favor of the team with a 2-1 series lead, and the Warriors will head to Houston with a chance to clinch the series victory if they can win again at home on Monday night.

Curry scored 36 points, complemented by 17 from Buddy Hield and 16 from Gary Payton II in the victory, but Golden State is hoping to have Butler back in the starting lineup for Game 4 after he sat out Saturday with a pelvic contusion.

But the Warriors proved they can beat the Rockets no matter who’s on the floor, pulling out a shorthanded victory that now has them flying high toward another deep playoff run.

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Watch: Aaron Gordon's putback dunk buzzer beater in Nuggets-Clippers Game 4 originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

If the Denver Nuggets advance from this series, this will be the play that will be remembered.

In the final seconds of Game 4 between the Nuggets and the Los Angeles Clippers, Denver star Nikola Jokic was forced into a tough fadeaway as time expired.

But just a tenth of a second before it did, forward Aaron Gordon flew for the putback dunk that counted after review, winning it for Denver 101-99 on the road.

Gordon immediately had confidence it would count before the official review, running the full length of the court and celebrating with teammates.

The series, now tied at 2-2, will return to Denver with Gordon helping the momentum be with his team entering Tuesday.

Jokic, as usual, posted incredible numbers to lead his side: 36 points, 21 rebounds and eight assists. Every Nugget starter scored double-digit points, with all five playing at least 42 minutes or more in a key game.

Gordon, with the game winner, finished with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists.

Los Angeles went a bit deeper with its rotation, but didn’t have one player clearly above the crop. Kawhi Leonard led the way with 24 points, nine rebounds and two assists, with Norman Powell adding 22 points.

Ivica Zubac tried to rival Jokic with 19 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, but James Harden mustered just 15 points to go with 11 assists and four rebounds. Bogdan Bogdanovic led the bench with seven points.

Gary Payton II, Warriors had Jimmy Butler's back in epic Game 3 win over Rockets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Without Jimmy Butler on Saturday night, the Warriors had to rely on their defense to beat the Houston Rockets, and that’s exactly what happened at Chase Center.

The Warriors summoned a collective Herculean effort to pull out a gritty 104-93 win over the No. 2-seeded Rockets to take a two-games-to-one series lead.

And while Steph Curry went thermonuclear to the tune of 36 points, Gary Payton II knows exactly how the Warriors won the contentious game.

“We got stops,” Payton told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke on “Warriors Postgame Live” moments after the final buzzer. “Talked about getting stops and converting them, take care of the ball. When we take care of the ball, it’s very hard to stop us. So that’s what we did. We got stops and converted.”

Butler was ruled out roughly an hour before tip-off due to a pelvic contusion sustained in Game 2, but the Warriors didn’t throw in the towel. They fought and scrapped their way to a win that most observers didn’t think they could earn with the six-time NBA All-Star in street clothes.

For Payton and the Warriors, they won the game for Butler.

“Protect Jimmy at all costs,” Payton told Burke. “Have Jimmy’s back. When he gets back, you know, be ahead. So, tonight we did that, had his back, everybody stepped up and made huge plays down the stretch and now hopefully we get him back for Game 4.”

"Protect Jimmy at all costs. Have Jimmy's back."

GP2 details the Warriors' mentality in Butler's absence 🤝 pic.twitter.com/exqcGmUsXz

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

Butler has roughly 48 more hours to rest up and get ready to possibly play Monday night. But if he doesn’t suit up, Curry will be ready to carry the load.

“We get him open, we get him looks and you know most of the time, he’s going to knock them down,” Payton said of Curry to Burke. “So we can continue to get him looks, crazy things happen.”

The Warriors are two wins away from advancing to the Western Conference semifinals, and they stole home-court advantage away from the Rockets.

If Butler returns Monday and Curry goes off again, the Warriors could make quick work of the feisty Rockets.

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What we learned as Steph wills Warriors to Game 3 win vs. Rockets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

SAN FRANCISCO – Playing without Jimmy Butler because of a left pelvic contusion he sustained in Game 2, Steph Curry and the Warriors willed their way to an exhilarating 104-93 Game 3 victory Saturday night at Chase Center against the Houston Rockets in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

History is on the Warriors’ side, too. The winner of a Game 3 when a series is tied one win apiece in a best-of-seven series has gone on to win 74.2 percent of the time.

Curry had to remember what his life was like before Butler’s arrival, but the four-time NBA champion put on his hero’s cape and gave the home crowd a show to remember. He started slow, but once his flame began to grow, Curry couldn’t be stopped. Curry scored a game-high 36 points on 12-of-23 shooting, went 5 of 13 from three and added seven rebounds and nine assists.

The Chef is COOKING 🧑‍🍳pic.twitter.com/nZEkpcc3WE

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

While the four starters alongside Curry combined to score 26 points, Buddy Hield gave Golden State 29 huge minutes off the bench. Hield was a plus-14 with 17 points, going 5 of 11 behind the 3-point line.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr made a change to his starting lineup knowing he would be without Butler. In came Jonathan Kuminga, as well as rookie center Quinten Post, which pushed Moses Moody to the bench. Kuminga scored seven points in seven minutes and only grabbed one rebound. Post in 27 minutes scored just two points but came down with a career-high 12 rebounds.

Houston’s length continued to be a problem for Golden State in a multitude of ways. But the Warriors were able to overcome the issue through other means, with more second-chance points, points in the paint and fastbreak points than the Rockets. They also had a lowly 10 turnovers, a winning number for the Warriors.

Here are three takeaways from the Warriors’ Game 3 win.

Let Curry Cook

To state the obvious, the Rockets are going to do everything in their power to get the ball out of Curry’s hands. He played into their strategy, passing too much to start the game, and his passes were sketchy at best. The Warriors for the third straight game were held to 18 points in the first quarter, with Curry only having two points on four shots. 

About halfway through the second quarter, Curry began taking things into his own hands. Driving into the lane for finger rolls. Burying buckets from downtown. Even hitting a mid-range jumper. Curry only made one 3-pointer through two quarters but went into halftime with 15 points, while the rest of the starting five had 11. 

Steph splash off the second chance ☔️pic.twitter.com/noqr0buGNX

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

Then the real takeover happened in the third quarter with Curry scoring 12 of the Warriors’ 23 points, giving fans some sizzling highlights. Curry’s scoring clinic brought him to 27 points going into the fourth quarter. He continued to get little help from the rest of the starting five.

Curry in the fourth quarter nailed two more threes and scored nine more points to put a cherry on top of this Warriors win.

Steph's got that look in his eye 😈 pic.twitter.com/nwghZboj5a

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

Kuminga Gets His Chance

The last few weeks have been quite the ride for Kuminga. After being a DNP-CD (Did Not Play, Coach’s Decision) in the final game of the regular season, Kuminga again wasn’t in Kerr’s game plan in the Warriors’ lone NBA play-in tournament game, a win against the Memphis Grizzlies. The same goes for Golden State’s Game 1 win against the Rockets. 

And he wasn’t expected to play in Game 2 until Butler went out to injury late in the first quarter. Now with Butler sidelined, Kuminga was back in the starting lineup for Game 3. Kuminga was very successful playing the Rockets in the regular season when he averaged 21.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game against them. That same success didn’t follow him early Saturday night. 

Kuminga in the first quarter only played five minutes, which was the fewest among the starting five. He had a turnover on a pass out of Draymond Green’s reach and attempted a wild left-handed shot attempt through traffic that had no chance. Kuminga played just nine minutes in the first half and scored three points. 

He added four points in the third quarter but didn’t see any action in the fourth, showing where Kerr’s trust is with him. If Butler can play Monday in Game 4, Kuminga might be fully out of the rotation again. If he is given another big opportunity, he’ll have to do more with it.

Buddy Buckets

It was easy to forget about Hield through the first two games of the series. The veteran shooting guard who made 200 threes for a seventh straight season only made one 3-pointer on five attempts coming into Saturday night for a total of seven points. On a night when the Warriors were searching for scoring help, Hield showed up. 

Hield at halftime was up to 11 points and had made three 3-pointers after missing his first two attempts. In the final two minutes of the first half, he and Curry went on a 9-0 run to cut the Rockets’ lead to three points. Hield in that span hit a 26-foot three and raced ahead of the defense to catch a long pass from Curry for an easy layup. 

Buddy hits his third triple of the first half 👌pic.twitter.com/qa0XS2yWWv

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

Steph gets the stop and finds Buddy 🙌pic.twitter.com/hXBskHlK3O

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 27, 2025

The outside has questioned Kerr’s faith in Hield throughout his highs and lows in an up-and-down season. The Warriors’ Game 3 win was a shining example of Hield’s value. Their offense much of the night was a hope and a prayer of Curry and Hield making threes. 

They combined to go 10 of 24 on threes. The rest of the Warriors went 4 of 21. A big game from Hield was required, and he provided the juice to take a two-games-to-one series lead.

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Rockets coach Udoka calls out Warriors fans before Game 3 in Bay originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Shots fired.

As expected, there has been no shortage of fireworks between the Warriors and Houston Rockets in their first-round NBA playoff series, with plenty of chatter between the teams and their fanbases.

But Rockets coach Ime Udoka clearly believes Dub Nation only feels comfortable talking trash online, as he said in his pregame press conference at Chase Center before Game 3 on Saturday.

“Very pleasant,” Udoka said with a smile when NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke asked about exchanges with Warriors fans who recognized him during his walks outside the Rockets’ hotel in San Francisco. “… Wherever you go, you might have hostility online and all this, but in person, nobody says anything. You’re not as brave in person.”

"You're not as brave in person."

Ime Udoka called out Warriors fans before Game 3 👀 pic.twitter.com/FZsOw1SI11

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 26, 2025

After Golden State’s Game 1 win, Houston came out with a physical approach in its Game 2 victory, which led to Jimmy Butler’s pelvic injury that will keep him out of Game 3. During that game, Udoka was heard on a hot mic telling the Rockets’ bench, “Don’t worry, they’re [the refs] not going to call anything, play through it,” and guard Fred VanFleet reportedly told Draymond Green the Warriors “better pray Jimmy’s back.”

Always-candid Rockets forward Dillon Brooks also told reporters Green was “dirty” and to blame for Butler’s injury — a sentiment coach Steve Kerr later called “interesting” — while many Warriors fans have pointed the finger at Houston forward Amen Thompson for crashing into Butler on the play. The entire situation played out during a game where Rockets fans chanted “F–k you, Draymond” in Houston.

It’s safe to say there’s no love lost between the Warriors and Rockets in the high-stakes matchup. And that goes for the fans, too — who now might be more inclined to give Udoka a piece of their mind if they run into him in the Bay.

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Jimmy Butler ruled out for Warriors-Rockets Game 3 due to left pelvic contusion originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Jimmy Butler will not play in Game 3 between the Warriors and the Houston Rockets on Saturday at Chase Center.

The Warriors ruled Butler out on the official NBA injury report for the pivotal swing game.

Fourth-year NBA forward Jonathan Kuminga will start in Butler’s place, the Warriors announced 30 minutes before tip-off.

Rookie center Quinten Post also will start, with guard Moses Moody shifting to the bench.

BRING 'EM OUT 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/DlMXyI6yUq

— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) April 27, 2025

NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dalton Johnson reported that Butler was on the Warriors’ practice court at Chase Center getting up shots about an hour before tip-off of Game 3.

Jimmy Butler is officially OUT with a left pelvic contusion. He’s currently getting up shots right now on the Warriors’ practice court. Absence isn’t expected to be a long one @NBCSWarriors

— Dalton Johnson (@DaltonJ_Johnson) April 26, 2025

Butler was all smiles walking into Chase Center before the game, but the Warriors clearly don’t believe he’s ready to play against a physical Rockets team.

Jimmy is feeling great walking into Chase 🙌 pic.twitter.com/YNb5NJHFli

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 26, 2025

Butler sustained the injury late in the first quarter of the Warriors’ Game 2 loss to the Rockets at Toyota Center.

The 35-year-old’s MRI on Thursday showed no fractures or structural damage.

The Warriors had hoped two full days off between games would give Butler enough time to receive treatment and be ready for Saturday night.

But Golden State also knows they can’t risk Butler making the injury worse. If they want to make a deep NBA playoff run, they’ll need him to be healthy in the long run.

Kuminga rejoined the Warriors’ rotation when Butler sustained the injury. But before that, the 22-year-old had received three consecutive DNPs (Did Not Play).

It remains to be seen how effective Kuminga will be, but he played well against the Rockets in four regular-season games, averaging 21.3 points and 6.8 rebounds.

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Celtics need to fight … any urge to retaliate against Magic originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Jaylen Brown is fed up. It’s hard to blame him.

The Orlando Magic have injured three Boston players with three flagrant fouls through three postseason games. Jayson Tatum bruised his wrist after Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s hard foul took him to the floor in Game 1, Kristaps Porzingis needed five stitches after Goga Bitadze’s elbow split his forehead in Game 2, and Brown dislocated a finger after an excessive foul by Cole Anthony early in Game 3.

Once is chance. Twice is a coincidence. Three times is a pattern. Now Brown is wondering out loud if the Celtics will be forced to match Orlando’s energy in this series.

“There might be a fight break out or something,” Brown said after Boston’s Game 3 loss in Orlando. “Because it’s starting to feel like it’s not even basketball, and the refs are not controlling the environment. So, it is what it is.

“If you want to fight it out, we can do that. We can fight to see who goes to the second round.”

While we are largely unopposed to this first-round matchup turning into WrestleMania, it should be stressed that it is not in Boston’s best interest to get dragged into Orlando’s shenanigans. The Magic are using increased physicality to mask an obvious talent discrepancy, and the Celtics would only be playing into Orlando’s hands to allow its antics to sap their focus.

So, as much as Celtics fans might like to see Torrey Craig dispatched to drop an Orlando player, it’s unlikely to solve what’s truly keeping the Magic in this series.

The Celtics need to fight. They need to fight for better shots. They need to fight to protect the basketball and maximize possessions. And they need to fight the urge to retaliate.

Orlando’s length and physicality has absolutely bothered Boston. The Celtics owned the third-best half-court offense in the NBA during the regular season, generating 104.1 points per 100 possessions against a set defense. But Boston’s efficiency has plummeted against Orlando, dipping to 93.1 points per 100 possessions in the half court through three games.

Too often the Celtics have allowed Orlando to get back and get set. The Magic have done a better job than just about any team this season running the Celtics off the 3-point line, and Boston’s offense has gotten frustrated while settling for poor late-clock shot attempts.

The third quarter on Friday night might have been the Celtics’ most atrocious frame of the season. Boston misfired on 14 of its 17 shot attempts while scoring just 11 points. After Tatum’s 3-pointer early in the frame, the Celtics went nearly seven minutes without a field goal, all with its starters on the floor.

Boston turned the ball over six times in the frame and watched its double-digit lead morph into a six-point deficit heading to the fourth quarter.

The Magic sent multiple crashers at the glass chasing offensive rebounds. Not only did they win Joe Mazzulla’s beloved shot margin (83 attempts to Boston’s 74) because of it, but the Celtics never made them pay by pushing in transition and looking for easy buckets against a scrambling defense.

Boston generated just 78.8 points per 100 possessions in the half-court, per Cleaning the Glass data. Impossibly, Orlando was even worse (76.2), but utilized offensive rebounds to mask some of its woes.

The Celtics turned the ball over a staggering 21 times overall, leading to 26 points. Orlando generated nearly 28 percent of its total offensive output on Boston giveaways. The Celtics ranked second in the NBA in turnover rate during the regular season (12.2 percent) but that number has spiked to 16.1 percent of possessions in the postseason.

🔊 Celtics Talk POSTGAME POD: Celtics’ offense falls flat in Game 3 loss to Magic | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

If you want to throw the spin control on Game 3, it would be easy to note that Tatum looked excellent after starting the day as doubtful on the injury report. Porzingis turned in a total dud, admitting his shot is “janky” at the moment and using an expletive to describe his overall performance. A bench group led by Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser had a nightmare offensive game as well.

And the Celtics still had a chance to force overtime on the final possession.

A fight isn’t going to do these Celtics any good. Regaining some focus, getting back to Celtics basketball, and getting this series over quick is the better path. Let Orlando take its physicality to a beach in Cancun.

The only thing that can prolong this series is Boston getting sucked into a wrestling match. The Celtics can be appropriately physical, but there’s a fine line to walk, especially when the referees are on high alert now.

Yes, the only thing Boston needs to fight is its urge to retaliate.