“I get to play with Steph [Curry] who I’m a fan of, just like 99.9% of the world,” recently acquired Warrior Jimmy Butler had said after what was a long battle between him and the Miami Heat. With a behavior that can only be described as “disgruntled” the six-time All-Star forward already had one leg out the door—intensified by his deteriorating relationship with Pat Riley. However, despite a blockbuster deal sending a joyful Butler to the Golden State Warriors, not everyone was happy initially. And leading the charge? Butler’s idol, Stephen Curry. But before we get to that…

What exactly caused the rift between the once-close Riley and Butler? As can be expected most of the time, it all came down to money. In simple words, the player and his team simply didn’t agree on what Butler thought he deserved despite the latter’s NBA Finals appearances (2020 and 2023) and an East finals appearance (2022) in five seasons. The first sign of drama emerged in May last year when the veteran chose to take a public dig at his team after missing out on the 4-1 first-round playoff series loss to Boston. Though his absence being due to injuring, Butler remarked in a now-viral video that the team would’ve won had he played. Riley’s answer? “If you’re not on the court playing … you should keep your mouth shut.” Expectedly, the jabs didn’t subside since then.

Finally, after months of public digs, social media exchanges, and several other arguments, the final nail in the coffin was a two-hour sit-down Butler reportedly had with the Heat President. Sources say it was an emotional exchange between two men who missed their deceased fathers. But Butler instead described his boss as “unhinged and disturbing.” What’s more? Riley reportedly gave Butler “unsolicited and unwanted” parenting advice, and even told him he loved him through tears before the meeting ended—all of which the president has firmly denied. From then on, the animosity just grew louder and louder, until Butler got what he wanted. “I’m so happy over here, the Warriors are top-notch,” the player had said. But the feelings were not really mutual, as was revealed by Stephen Curry on March 12…

During a conversation on the 95.7 The Game, the host asked, “Walk us through where you were at when you got the news [that] Jimmy was coming to town and your thoughts?” To this Curry responded, “That was a whirlwind of a day. We were about to play Utah and rumors, talks, conversations, what ifs, and then it happens. So first, you’re upset because you’re losing guys that you went to war with, Wiggs especially, who helped us win a championship and saw him flourish for the five years he was here. Then it’s Kyle, Lindy, seeing them guys go, who were a big part of early in the year.” Notably, not just Curry, but even Buddy Hield found it hard to believe what had transpired.

The 32-year-old revealed that the team felt a similar way to Steph after Andrew Wiggins got traded away. The way Hield worded it didn’t help, either. “It was emotional in that locker room. I was even more emotional because I wish it was me that got traded because Wiggs did so much for this franchise,” the player had said. But wait till you hear what he said just a few days later.

But, first let’s take you through how Curry’s emotions toward his new teammate have changed for the better since then…

Stephen Curry says Jimmy Butler made teammates “better”

Yes, there were mixed feelings after the Jimmy Butler trade. But they didn’t have anything to do with Jimmy himself. Rather, the loss of Andrew Wiggins was what hurt the team’s sentiments. However, Curry has revealed that once they started thinking about the future, things started to fall into place for the Dubs.

“We’re excited that Jimmy was here. We were…understanding of who he was as a superstar and the idea that he plays basketball a very similar way, trying to, as he would say, ‘make the right play.’ But he demands a presence…And you can see it’s helped me and Draymond, but I think overall it’s helped everybody else more because he makes guys around him better,” Steph said about the effect Butler has on his teammates.

As for Hield, his statements did a complete 180-degree turn. “He’s just the connector on both ends. He knows how to win, he knows how to play. He’s aggressive on defense, he’s the guy that’s seen multiple schemes. He’s the force that we need on both ends. He knows how to settle us down, when we need a bucket to get us settled down he gets to the free-throw line. Like I said he’s a great connector on both ends and it’s why he’s here,” he said earlier this week.

And there was Moses Moody who said, “It’s a lot easier playing with Jimmy Butler. One, he calls for so much attention so a lot of times my guy is looking at him on defense a lot and he’s just always making the right play, always on the lookout. So it frees up a lot of open shots. That’s one thing that he does for sure.”

Jimmy’s effect on his teammates has been obvious, especially Steph. Not having to carry the Dubs’ offensive burden on his shoulders has meant Steph can play the way he wants. And that’s translated to him becoming the most efficient 25+ ppg scorer since the All-Star break, per StatMamba on X. Since then, Curry has delivered 29.5 ppg with an absurd true shooting percentage of 71%!

Clearly, the signing of Jimmy Buckets has rejuvenated the best player on the Dubs squad. And any reports of the locker room having problems can and should be ignored as the Warriors look to make a title challenge with Butler among their ranks!