Warriors Struggle with Defense as Butler Expresses Concerns

Jimmy Butler, who recently joined the Warriors, is already noticing some issues with the team’s defensive performance. After a 131-127 loss to the Trail Blazers on Friday night—marking the Warriors’ third consecutive defeat—Butler had some frank observations.

Currently, Golden State is tied with the Knicks in allowing an average of 114.9 points per game, which is the 11th lowest in the league. However, during this losing streak, they’ve allowed at least 120 points in two of those games, and three times over the last six.

“We’re just not protecting anyone,” Butler remarked. “I may not have been here long, but it seems like winning a championship hasn’t really been their approach. You have to treat every matchup as personal. Sure, help is on the way, but we really need to step it up when it comes to guarding.”

The Warriors came into the season with high hopes of competing for a title, as they usually do, but performance has faltered as they near the quarter mark of the season. Last year, their defense was ranked seventh when Butler was traded to the team, but they’ve since dropped to 10th place.

Although they aren’t at the bottom in points allowed, a concerning trend shows that they’ve surrendered 120 points in half of their games so far this season.

In the recent game against Portland, the Warriors permitted the Trail Blazers to shoot at nearly 48% and lost the rebound battle 52-32. Butler commented on how Portland seemed to capitalize on the opportunities, saying they “were hitting all the shots we wanted.”

Four players from the Trail Blazers scored over 20 points, with Caleb Love and Deni Avdija leading the way with 26 each.

“I’m generally optimistic, but I’m also a realist,” Butler shared after scoring 20 points. “Sometimes, you can outscore individual players on any given night, but you can’t always count on your shots going in. Defense has to be consistent. Until we get back to guarding effectively, it’s going to be a struggle for a while, but I believe we can turn it around.”

Fortunately, Golden State has an opportunity to improve its defensive game in the next matchup, facing the struggling Jazz on Monday.

Butler also mentioned that he and Draymond Green take their defensive shortcomings to heart. “He’s not one to shy away from the facts. He’s going to be angry about this,” Butler noted. “And frankly, he might not care too much about who gets the shots off. He just wants to stop every play, and that’s how it should be.”