Buddy Hield Breaks Silence on Tense Warriors Bench Affairs as Jimmy Butler Sends Sly Message After Rockets Win

Jimmy Butler might not have suited up for the Warriors tonight, but he still found a way to make his presence felt. Sidelined with a pelvis and deep glute muscle contusion, the veteran forward shifted into mentor mode, coaching up his teammates from the bench. During one timeout, cameras caught him pulling Buddy Hield aside, seemingly offering tips on his dribble moves. But did Buddy actually appreciate the advice—or was Jimmy just stirring the pot?

Even while sidelined, Jimmy Butler found a way to leave his mark—this time by stepping into an unofficial coaching role. When Buddy Hield was asked about Butler’s temporary sideline duties, he couldn’t resist having a little fun first: “Terrible. Terrible advice. Terrible advice. I just was like tuning him out the whole time you know.” But Dub Nation, don’t worry—he was just joking.

He later revealed his true feelings, highlighting Jimmy’s impact, “Nah, he’s been good. He’s been positive. He’s telling me how to read drives. Except for that one time I got picked by Steven Adams, he just gave me a look and I was like ‘Yo, don’t even talk about it.’ But he’s been good. He’s just talking and encouraging everybody.”

Moreover, Butler’s advice clearly worked for Hield, as he dropped 17 points on 5 of 11 shooting from deep range. His best performance of these playoffs so far. But after he publicly roasted Jimmy, the veteran forward had to get his revenge. Butler, taking notes from his former teammate — Kevin Love  — did it by sending a sly message through his latest Instagram post.

Following the Warriors’ dominant victory at home, Jimmy shared a picture of the Stephen Curry brand logo shining in the sky just like it does for Batman in Gotham City, captioning it, “Thanks Batman and team. excluding Buddy.”

Yes, Butler did not credit Hield for his contribution in the win after the sharpshooter deemed his coaching “terrible.” Of course, this was a friendly back and forth, and not some residing bad blood between the two stars. But why did Jimmy refer to Steph as Batman?

‘Batman’ Stephen Curry and ‘Robin’ Jimmy Butler: The Origin Story!

Ever since Steph’s Splash Brother, Klay Thompson left the Bay Area, he was looking for a new partner to carry the franchise with him. For half a season, the Warriors struggled, fighting to stay in the playoff race. Enter Jimmy Butler. Following February’s blockbuster trade, Butler became that secondary superstar Steph was looking for. Together, they made a massive playoff push and climbed up the rankings.

Then came the Warriors vs Grizzlies Play-in encounter. Facing a win or go home situation, the superstar duo combined for 75 points, clinching the seventh seed in the West. And Butler made the comment, “I think any team has a chance when I’m on the team but I know that every team has a chance when Steph’s on the team. So, I get to play Robin. That’s my Batman.” Thus originated Bay Area’s own superhero duo.

Even after winning Game 1 in Houston, Jimmy brought back the reference following Steph’s 31-point performance, “Like I always say, Batman comes out of nowhere. You never see him coming. He just falls from the sky, from the building, behind the door, does some incredible things. Man, he’s gonna be the reason we do win it all. We all know that. We got to protect him at all costs.” Although he couldn’t do it tonight, hopefully, Robin will join Batman on Monday for Game 4.