Steve Kerr identifies an area of ​​need regarding Jimmy Butler

As things currently stand, The Golden State Warriors don’t look alike a team that finished 23-8 last season.

Those ultra motivated, highly connected Dubs who played with juice and energy following the blockbuster Jimmy Butler trade has only shown flashes this season. They were inconsistent on defense, disorganized on offense and struggled to build any momentum from game to game. And those traits reared their ugly heads in the Warriors’ 136-131 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, spoiling the historic Stephen Curry’s 48-point performance.

For Steve Kerra big reason the Warriors haven’t played up to their potential is because of their inability to land Butler in rhythm.

“I thought we did a better job last year of putting ourselves in position to attack and create shots for people,” Kerr said after the loss. “We’ve got to get back to that kind of game control where we go to him in the half court, especially when Steph is out. We go to him in the half system, take care of the ball, turn the other team over and control the game. And we’re not there.”

On the season, Butler is average 19.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 31.2 minutes in 23 games. That’s not far from his averages last year, but as Kerr pointed out, they’ve been prone to long offensive lulls that don’t involve Butler at all.

“We’re a little more in the shuffle,” Kerr explained. “We’ve got to be more accurate in getting to some sets where we know we can get him the ball … In the Minnesota game, he went four straight possessions without touching the ball when Steph wasn’t on the floor.

Consequence of not feeding Butler

What made Golden State so deadly last season was how they were able to balance the gravitas and chaos that Curry creates with the deliberate and calculated style of basketball that Butler brings. It gave them a style they could go to in the always precarious minutes without a curry; the whole point of the Butler trade was to get a guy you could run the offense around without needing Curry.

But the consequence of not running the offense through Butler is that you get games like this against Portland. Pace, speed, transition opportunities and a lot of points – things that do not fit well with the molecular composition of the Warriors.

“It was just a track meet,” Kerr said, pointing to a symptom of Butler not being in a position to control the game. “That team is a lot more athletic than us. And they beat us all three times because we weren’t able to control them on penetration, turnovers and all that stuff. So we have to find a way to control the game.”

The Blazers went a whopping 20-of-39 from beyond the 3-point line, a team that entered the game ranked 29th in the league in 3-point percentage. Part of that stems from the Warriors letting this game become a shootout, but the inability to stop Portland on offense may have been a bigger factor. As in the other two games, the Blazers got most of their 3-pointers by breaking the paint and shooting it out to open up shooters.

“There were a couple of breakdowns on the ball with the switches, letting them go for threes,” Curry said after the game. “And then there were breakdowns (with) drives, a swing into the corner; you leave capable shooters open.”

How Curry views the inclusion of Butler

Butler getting more involved is the least of Curry’s worries given his caliber.

“It’s not just a Jimmy thing,” Curry said. “He’s such a unique player because he can dominate a game even if it doesn’t show in the stats. He’s going to find ways to get everybody else involved; we just have to be organized around him. But tonight, I don’t think it was him offensively at all; it was us collectively, defensively. You get 130+, you should win on that.

Teams with the size, speed and athleticism of Portland have been Golden State’s kryptonite this season. That’s usually the case with older guard teams like the Warriors.

But whether it’s Butler’s offense or POA’s defense, what the Warriors are looking for is consistency. They have used nine unique starting lineups in their last nine games. Part of that is due to injuries and load management; Curry missed five games in that span, and Butler, Draymond Green and Al Horford were in and out of the lineup. However, to go anywhere this season, the Warriors need to find an identity.

The lack of identity, the lack of signature composition to which to turn, is difficult to overcome. And the Warriors know it.

“Whether (uniform starting lineups) are forced or not, to find a rhythm, I don’t know how many teams have been successful over 82 (games) when that is part of their identity,” Curry said.

“Hopefully we can fix that. Have a consistent run of games where you know who’s out there, you know what the rotations are, and guys relax. Because that doesn’t just help offensively, it helps defensively.”

Stephen Curry covers Golden State’s breakdowns against Portland, organizing around Butler and the value of establishing continuity.

“Hopefully we can … have a sustained run of games where you know who’s there and you know what the rotations are and guys feel comfortable.”

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— Sam Gordon (@BiSamGordon) December 15, 2025