The Golden State Warriors defeat the Houston Rockets 109-106 in Game 4 to lead the best-of-seven series 3-1.
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The legitimacy of the Rockets’ second-seed status is suddenly in question. At the same time, the authenticity of Jimmy Butler’s ability to rise in springtime once again is not.
Such is the latest summary of this first-round playoff series between Houston and Golden State, where the team that needed to qualify through the SoFi Play-In Tournament is now in full command.
It’s 3-1 in favor of the Warriors — powered by Butler down the stretch of a suspenseful and snippy Game 4 –who had all the answers in the crucial moments of a game decided by three points.
This could be a series where experienced Golden State is too much to handle, while the young Rockets are slowly discovering that there are steps to this playoff process.
It all depends on the response by Houston and whether it can learn in a hurry, because time is running out on their season.
Here are five takeaways from a gut-checking, 109-106 Warriors victory:
1. From Layoff to Playoff Jimmy
The Warriors finally witnessed the Jimmy Butler playoff experience, and it was as timely as it was welcome. This game was up for grabs, and it needed someone to emerge as the hero.
Butler essentially said, why not me?
He’s built for these kind of games and moments. A pelvic contusion suffered in Game 2 that caused him to miss Game 3 was not an issue Monday — even through 40 minutes.
He scored 23 of his 27 points in the second half, 14 in the fourth quarter, and put the Warriors up for good with three free throws after Dillon Brooks — who jawed with Butler in the first half — committed a silly touch foul on a 3-point attempt. Now that he’s healthy enough to play, the Warriors can expect more of this from Butler.
“Just amazing,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
Butler even had enough energy remaining in the final seconds to soar high and snatch a clutch rebound in heavy traffic off Alperen Sengun’s game-tying attempt in the final seconds. Which leads us to …
2. Draymond brings the defense
He skated on thin ice with the officials after receiving a technical foul in the first half, then spent generous time in the second half on the bench with five fouls.
But in the moment of truth — when it was time for the Warriors to get a critical defensive stop — Draymond Green would of course be on the floor. On the Rockets’ next-to-last possession, when the ball found Sengun — who damaged the Warriors all night for 31 points — Draymond squared up and accepted the iso challenge.
It was one-on-one to decide the game. Sengun managed to get just inside the free throw line and, with Draymond clinging to him, tossed his signature soft hook … which fell short.
It was nothing new for Green, a finalist for and previous winner of the Kia Defensive Player of the Year award as well as one of the best defenders of this generation. Anyone who studied his stats in this game — six points, eight rebounds and two assists — and came away unimpressed didn’t really watch the only part of the game that really mattered.
He played the last 7:51 of the game with five fouls and not only survived, but thrived.
3. The other Green wasn’t money
As for Jalen Green, this series is slowly developing into a nightmare. For the third time in four games, the Rockets’ leading scorer in the regular season was vapor. He had nothing.
He was on the bench Monday with the game up for grabs. That alone spoke volumes about Ime Udoka’s confidence in him; how many coaches would pull the plug on such an important source of offense?
Well, Green didn’t give Udoka much choice. Green was flat and, even worse, meek. He took just eight shots, which is also how many points he scored. When he missed a shot, his body language sagged. Green eventually became unplayable because he didn’t contribute in other ways (three fouls, three rebounds, one assist, spotty defense).
Jalen Green manages to put up only 8 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist on 3-for-8 shooting in the Rockets’ Game 4 loss.
This was a game that begged for more, with the Rockets missing 12 free throws and suffering through a dry spell to open the second half, when they were outscored 18-1 by the Warriors.
Green has scored in single digits in three of the four games. Even more, he mocked Draymond two nights earlier, after they exchanged words while leaving the floor.
“Just talking,” Jalen said. “He can’t really do much of anything else, so talking is his only way.”
It’s true that a Green in this series really hasn’t done much of anything else. Just not that one.
4. Podz dips into his bag
This is his first taste of the playoffs, so maybe it’s natural that Brandin Podziemski was initially somewhat mild — just 24 points in the first three games.
Then he had 26 in Game 4. That kept the Warriors in the game when others struggled. Aside from Butler, Podziemski was the biggest problem for the Rockets.
He especially punished Houston from deep, hitting six 3-pointers (four more than Curry). He had more points in this game than Jalen Green had in Games 1, 3 and 4 combined (24).
Arena Link: Brandin Podziemski discusses Warriors taking 3-1 lead over Rockets.
“You’ve got to tell yourself you belong in the moment,” Podziemski said. “I think good and great players want the moment and thrive in the moment and don’t back down from it.”
That’s a lot of confidence spoken and displayed by the young guard. In the postseason, he might be growing up.
5. Steph steps into supporting role
This was a rare game when Stephen Curry was … a role player? A bystander? Something like that. Two nights removed from a 36-point output in Game 3, he was middling, taking only 12 shots. He deferred, first to Podziemski, then in the fourth quarter — which is usually his quarter — to Butler.
And this was a good sign for the Warriors.
When they can get this level of production from Poziemski and Buddy Hield (15 points) on the perimeter, and have the option of going heavy to Butler in the final minutes, it accomplishes two things:
- It preserves Curry
- It makes the Warriors more unpredictable.
The more weapons, the better. Credit Curry for allowing Butler to flourish. Once again, the most accommodating superstar of this generation — remember, he willingly shared the ball with Kevin Durant — showed his true colors.
Curry knows: If the Warriors plan to travel deep in these playoffs, they’ll need options.
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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