One moment completely disrupted Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors’ night. Despite blowing out the Miami Heat 135-112, the team lost star forward Jimmy Butler midway through the third quarter to a gruesome-looking injury, and he was hurriedly escorted off the court by teammates. The arena was quiet, the crowd holding their collective breath as he hobbled off the court.

In the immediate aftermath, while the injury appeared severe, Butler was seen joking with officials and teammates, and the hope was that any update on his condition would be positive. While the team awaited an update on his MRI, Curry addressed reporters and delivered a careful message.

“I haven’t talked to [Butler] since the game,” Curry said during his postgame conference. “You never like to see a situation like that, especially somebody tough as he is, and you’re praying for the best, obviously, with scans and all that.”

Curry’s response prevented speculation, and kept the focus on medical clarity. Unfortunately for him, the updates have only made things worse. After the incident, the forward was immediately sent for imaging, which revealed a torn right ACL, ending his season early for the Warriors and potentially forcing a major reset for the team.

The timing couldn’t be worse for the team. Since his arrival, Butler has been the stabilizer of the team’s offense, and an added veteran presence who can absorb chaos and turn it into structure akin to Draymond Green. His solid inside-the-arc scoring was a natural complement Curry’s shooting, but apart from that, the team has also lost an elite floor raiser.

“I won’t talk about him being out until we know what’s going on,” Curry said, acknowledging the reality without fully stating it. “The way we played down the stretch of the game tonight… We’re going to have to do it by committee if anybody goes down. ”

Stephen Curry, Warriors to Play by Committee After Losing ‘Old Reliable’ Butler

Stephen Curry’s ‘by committee’ approach was on full demonstration tonight. Immediately after Butler went down with the injury, the Warriors ripped off a 12-0 run to respond, taking their lead from two points to 14 in just under two and a half minutes. The surge was led by seven points from Brandin Podziemski, and Curry praised that aggressive scoring.

He also highlighted Buddy Hield, Moses Moody, and Al Horford, who all made key contributions, combining for 39 points on solid efficiency as well as superb defense. However, consistency is key, and things are going to have to continue this way if the team hopes to keep playing well going into the playoffs.

“He’s old reliable,” Curry said of Butler‘s impact. “He just meets whatever moment it is, whether he needs a scorer, whether he gets everybody organized defensively, what he does, all his playmaking.”

With Butler now gone, the team needs to fully reevaluate what they wish to do this season. Do they let yet another elite Curry season go to waste? Or do they risk making a move at the deadline to try to fill the hole Butler left behind?

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