The Golden State Warriors pulled off an impressive 125-111 win over the Milwaukee Bucks for their second win since acquiring Jimmy Butler. The Bucks were at home but were heavily limited by the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo, although Damian Lillard rose to the challenge and had a scoring battle against Stephen Curry.Â
The Warriors saw Curry go off for 38 points (12-24 FG, 6-16 3P), six rebounds, and four assists. He was nicely complemented by Jimmy Butler’s 20 points (4-12 FG), nine rebounds, six assists, and four steals while Buddy Hield had a solid 16 points (7-15 FG) and seven rebounds. Moses Moody had 13 points (5-10 FG) and three steals as a starter while Quentin Post had 13 points (4-5 FG) off the bench.
Damian Lillard stood up the Curry’s onslaught with 38 points (12-20 FG) of his own alongside five rebounds and seven assists. New acquisition Kyle Kuzma had 21 points (6-9 FG) and six rebounds while Taurean Prince had 19 points (6-9 FG) and eight rebounds. No other Bucks player scored in double-digits as the impressive trio couldn’t keep up with Golden State.
Let’s take a deeper look at this game.
Jimmy Butler Has Brought A Much-Needed Change To The Warriors
The addition of Jimmy Butler is one of the prime reasons they won tonight. This is the kind of game we have seen the Warriors lose plenty of times this season, as a cold three-point shooting night was a death sentence for them this season. However, they pulled this win off while shooting 13-45 (28.9 3P%) from three, their lowest percentage in a win this season.
Jimmy Butler is a key reason behind that, as the team is trying to incorporate his style of play into the squad instead of forcing him to unilaterally adapt to their motion offense. Deliberate halfcourt plays to force drives to the rims for easy buckets or fouls saw Golden State score 50 points in the paint while generating 38 free throws. Butler received 15 of them alone.
Despite a cold shooting night (4-12 FG, 0-2 3P), Butler was an impactful offensive player by his drives, ability to get to the line, and instinctual passing. This is the kind of co-star Curry needed and this is why the Warriors gave him a two-year extension without him playing a minute for them.
Sloppy Play Punishes Milwaukee
The Bucks were shorthanded without Giannis tonight, but they got a pretty sizable big-three performance from Damian Lillard, Kyle Kuzma, and Taurean Prince. The lack of production on the roster outside of that was a larger indicator of the team just looking out of sorts on the ball tonight.
They had 20 turnovers tonight, giving up 31 points off them to the Warriors. Golden State committed just nine turnovers all game with the Bucks managing just two points off them. This stat alone proves where the Bucks lost this game, with Lillard coughing up 10 turnovers alone.Â
He was overburdened in the absence of Giannis and tried forcing passes while being hounded by the Warriors defenders. While he kept the Bucks in the game as the team shot an efficient 38-76 (50.0 FG%) from the field, these turnovers were costly for the franchise tonight.Â
The Bucks have to figure out what their offense will look like with Giannis’ upcoming absence, as games like tonight will not be tenable for the 28-24 franchise.
A Classic Stephen Curry And Damian Lillard Duel
Stephen Curry and Damian Lillard were rivals for most of the 2010s, although Curry’s Warriors always had the upper hand on Lillard’s Portland Trail Blazers. Nonetheless, Lillard did his best to slay the superteam Warriors and never got over the hump, putting up some magnificent performances in that time. He got up for the game tonight, putting up 38 points (12-20 FG) alongside five rebounds and seven assists.
But just like old times, Curry showed up to hand Lillard a loss with 38 points (12-24 FG, 6-16 3P), six rebounds, and four assists. The Warriors once again had more production from across the lineup, so Lillard’s individual scoring proved to be meaningless.
Lillard did get comprehensively outplayed by Curry despite the even scoring. He was more efficient as a shooter but was so prone to turnovers that the Warriors created a huge advantage from those alone. But watching Curry and Lillard battle the way they did tonight brought back old memories, as these star point guards have aged into their mid-30s but still playing at an All-Star level.
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