The Golden State Warriors' championship hopes looked dead in the water prior to pulling off the Jimmy Butler trade. Without Butler, the Warriors relied so much on Stephen Curry to do everything, and at 37 years of age, that doesn't seem to be a fair ask of him anymore. But with Butler embracing the “Robin” role to Curry's “Batman”, it looks like anything is possible for this Warriors squad, as evidenced by their strong start to the 2025 NBA playoffs after taking a 95-85 victory over the Houston Rockets in Game 1 of their first-round matchup.

Curry made headlines when he scored just three points on 1-10 shooting in a loss to the Rockets earlier this month. Many saw the Rockets as a team that has the requisite personnel to make life hell for the Warriors star. But Curry, as he's done to the Rockets throughout his career, scorched the nets to the tune of 31 points, including a few bonkers three-point makes that had Butler fawning over him during and after the game.

“He does [continue to amaze]. Like I always say, Batman comes out of nowhere. You never see him coming. He just fall 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,” Butler said in his postgame interview.

The playoffs is where the true stars of the game make their mark, and Curry, who's accomplished everything there is to accomplish in the NBA, knows what it takes to get the job done. And there may not be a scarier man in the NBA than a version of Curry with plenty of weapons alongside him, and this Warriors squad, when they put it together, can certainly go all the way.

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Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) reacts after making a basket
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If there's any combination that knows how dangerous Stephen Curry is, it's Ime Udoka and the Rockets franchise. Udoka certainly paid the Warriors star plenty of respect, as he had his entire team hounding Curry all over the court and even giving him a hug just to prevent him from moving freely.

In the end, Curry still had a monster game; 31 points is a lot coming from one player in a game that ended in a 95-85 score line. And the Warriors will look to keep it going as they head into Game 2 against the Rockets with a chance to put their longtime playoff rival in an even deeper hole.