The Golden State Warriors ranked 32nd -- yes 32nd if you include international teams -- in free-throw attempts during preseason, but that's quickly been addressed thanks to the return of star forward Jimmy Butler in their opening night matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers.
After attempting an average of just 21.4 free-throws as a team during the preseason, Butler went a perfect 7-of-7 in the first-quarter at Crypto.com Arena. The 6x All-Star had a team-high 12 points in his first nine minutes, helping the visitors to a 28-22 lead after the opening period.
Jimmy Butler has immediately addressed the Warriors' free-throw shooting issues
Three of Butler's free-throws came at end of the period when he was fouled by Marcus Smart on a tough 3-point attempt. The Lakers challenged believing that Butler had kicked out in the shooting motion, but the officials still decided Smart was in his landing zone in what was one of four first-half fouls for the former Defensive Player of the Year.
Golden State shot zero free-throws in the first-half of their last preseason matchup against the Lakers the previous Sunday, yet things couldn't have been any different after Butler and Stephen Curry missed that game.
The star duo combined to go a perfect 14-of-14 in the first-half of Tuesday's game, with the Warriors 16-of-18 as a team in contrast to the Lakers who left some at the line in going 9-of-16 (56.2%).
Butler finished the half with 17 points, two rebounds and two assists on just six field-goal attempts, while Curry had 14 points and three steals as the pair combined for 31 of Golden State's 55 points.
Butler had initially been questionable for Tuesday's matchup due to a minor ankle injury, having missed the team's final three preseason games. In fact, the 36-year-old played just 32 minutes across the preseason -- the least of any Warrior player outside of the now departed Taevion Kinsey and Marques Bolden.
Golden State led for the majority of the first-half but fell victim to a devastating period from Luka Doncic late in the second-quarter. The Slovenian superstar finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 19 first-half minutes, shooting 7-of-13 as he unsurprisingly controlled the Laker offense with LeBron James injured on the sidelines.
Doncic gave the Lakers the lead with a nasty step-back three over Butler, only for the former Heat star to catch a rare Curry air ball and draw two more free-throws to regain a 55-54 lead for the hosts to end the half.