Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler watched his All-Star teammate Stephen Curry exit the game in the third quarter of Thursday’s 117-114 win over the Toronto Raptors. Curry was ultimately ruled out due to a pelvic injury as the Warriors captured their ninth win in 10 tries. However, Steph’s health hangs in the balance amid Golden State’s pursuit of home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. Butler knows the margin of error just got thinner for his team.
After Thursday’s win, Butler addressed the significance of potentially losing Curry soon, per The Athletic’s Anthony Slater.
“I think the message is going to be, whether he’s with us or whether he’s not, hopefully, he is, but if he isn’t, that’s just more perfect basketball that we’re gonna have to play,” Butler said. “We can’t afford to turn the ball over. We can’t afford to foul because we don’t have the one individual that can automatically get us back into the game. But we want the guy. We want our guy with us.”
Jimmy Butler on the Warriors need to play “perfect” basketball if Steph Curry misses time
“We can’t afford to turn the ball over. We can’t afford to foul. Because we don’t have the one individual who can automatically get us back into the game.” pic.twitter.com/lbkGic7gd4
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) March 21, 2025
Butler’s game-sealing block Raptors’ Jamal Shead’s layup attempt kept Toronto at bay in the final frame. Butler finished with a triple-double (16 points, 12 assists, 11 rebounds) in the win. Draymond Green stepped up with 21 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and four steals, and Curry left the game with 17 points in 25 minutes.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Curry was undergoing an MRI during his postgame media availability, per The Athletic’s Anthony Slater.
“He’s getting an MRI right now. He just fell in on the pelvic tailbone area. He was trying to come back,” Kerr said. “He thought he might be able to come back and we just decided not to risk anything. Hopefully, it’s not bad. But, he’s getting imaging right now.”
Steve Kerr said Steph Curry is getting an MRI on his pelvic/tailbone injury. He said Curry wanted to come back in the game, but Warriors wanted to be cautious and shut him down for testing. pic.twitter.com/OzFNaipZVJ
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) March 21, 2025
Kerr added that he didn’t see Curry after the win. By the time the game was over, Steph was gone to undergo imaging during the postgame.
Jimmy Butler, Warriors rally past Raptors without Stephen Curry
Without Warriors All-Star Stephen Curry, the Warriors rallied past the Raptors in the second half, outscoring their opponent 31-24 in the fourth quarter. Raptors forward Scottie Barnes scored a game-high 29 points and finished with 10 rebounds and six assists. Immanuel Quickley had 21 points, eight assists, and four rebounds, and Jakob Poeltl added 18 points and eight rebounds.
The Warriors’ supporting cast of Quinten Post (18 points), Jonathan Kuminga (16 points, four rebounds, two steals), and Brandin Podziemski (15 points, three rebounds) contributed to the victory, while Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler led the charge.
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