An illness has forced Golden State Warriors superstar point guard Steph Curry to the sidelines for the last three Dubs games, including Sunday night’s meeting with the Indiana Pacers at Chase Center in San Francisco.
However, Golden State didn’t seem to need the future Basketball Hall of Famer — not just to beat the Pacers, but to demolish them.
With Butler leading the charge, the Warriors crushed their visitors to the tune of a 114-83 score.
Golden State’s victory was so decisive that it earned a place in the franchise’s history.
Via ESPN Insights: “The Warriors’ 31-point win vs. the Pacers (114-83) is the team’s largest victory in a game without Steph Curry since he entered the NBA in 2009-10.”
Butler rose to the occasion and showed that he can still put a team on his back just like he used to during his days with the Miami Heat. The six-time NBA All-Star put up 21 points on 10-for-15 shooting from the field while adding nine rebounds, seven assists, two steals and a block in 30 minutes.
But Butler did not have to do it all by himself. It was still a collective effort for Golden State, with five other Warriors scoring at least 12 points. Quinten Post and Brandin Podziemski each had 14 points, while Will Richard and Moses Moody contributed 15 and 13 points, respectively. Even veteran big man Al Horford had 12 points, his highest-scoring game in five outings.
Perhaps the Warriors’ huge win over Indiana says more about the poor state of the reigning Eastern Conference champions than Golden State’s situation without the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player.