Jimmy Butler fails to carry the Golden State Warriors in the second round, and Carmelo Anthony explains the reason behind it.
The Golden State Warriors’ 2025 NBA playoff journey ended in the second round at the hands of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Warriors were a low species, but fans were hoping for a better result than a 4-1 series defeat from the franchise.
A big surprise was the lack of offensive basketball from superstar Jimmy Butler in the absence of Stephen Curry. The 4x NBA champions played in just 13 minutes as they missed 5 from Game 2 due to a hamstring injury.
Because of its value, the Warriors may not have reached the playoffs without the trade in the blockbuster Butler.
The organization was 23-8 after the transaction, but it was playoff time and Butler never looked comfortable. Former NBA star Carmelo Anthony shared his opinion on it in a recent episode at 7pm on the Brooklyn Podcast.
“When you first get to the team, you have this level of excitement and adrenaline and it’s just going forward, like everyone is excited.
“But when S___ dies and settles, the house calms down and now it’s time to run this playoff, there’s excitement, the adrenaline is there, but now I don’t know how Steph Curry works on that level,” Mello said.
He added:
Simply put, Anthony is denounced early exit of the Warriors strategy, which is tailored to the surroundings of curry during the playoffs.
Head coaches Steve Kerr and Steph Curry helped the Warriors win four NBA championships. Obviously, they have a system that has worked in the past.
But what happens when the core of that system is injured? Now, what happened to Butler is the answer.
“I think the period was short. I’ll give them that. They created a hell of movement. They tried it. If Steph wasn’t injured, they’d probably be talking about them,” Anthony continued.
Mello further states: “We saw Jimmy at the height of what he could do, his potential, his talent, his will to win, but we have the way they can implement it in a system that is dynasty and they play.
“That’s not what you’re doing. You don’t shoot three people. You don’t play that way. So now that level of comfort starts to change.”
With four games without curry, Butler had only one point game of over 30. He couldn’t break the 20-point mark for the rest of the match.
It was clear that Butler was struggling with the Warriors’ offense as Butler attempted less than 15 field goals in three of his four losses in the second round.