While Stephen Curry may always be the biggest and most important piece of the Golden State Warriors, another major strength is starting to reveal itself from a team standpoint.
The non-Curry minutes are proving a significant asset to the Warriors over recent games, led by Jimmy Butler whose acquisition in February last year continues to prove more valuable almost by the game.
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Having Butler lead a non-Curry unit -- one that also that typically features veterans De'Anthony Melton and Al Horford -- is winning Golden State a number of games right now amid their 10-4 record over the past 14 games.
Nothing epitomized that more than Thursday's game against the New York Knicks where the Warriors found themselves down 31-14 after less than eight minutes. Golden State were down 14 when Curry exited with just over three minutes left in the opening period, something that would historically spell trouble and likely leave them in an even bigger hole.
But with Butler leading the show, the Warriors can not only hold the fort without their superstar guard, but also thrive and create separation from their opponent, or in the case of Thursday's game, climb back into the contest rather quickly.
Golden State finished the quarter on an 11-2 run after Curry went to the bench, bringing the Knicks advantage back to a much more manageable five points. The Warriors eventually wore down the visitors from there, proving too powerful given New York were minus Jalen Brunson who was sidelined through injury.
Curry did his thing with 27 points, but it was Butler who led the way with 32 on 14-of-22 shooting -- the most field-goals he's attempted in a regular season game with Golden State. He was a +15 in 32 minutes, while Brandin Podziemski (+22) and Melton (+17) led that category off the bench.
The Warriors now rank fifth in bench net rating over the past 15 games, with Melton, Brandin Podziemski and young forward Gui Santos leading the team in plus-minus over the same stretch.
Butler and Melton have a +21.9 net rating when they share the floor -- easily the best of any two-man combination to have played more than 200 minutes together. The Podziemski-Melton-Butler-Horford four-man combination has a +38.2 net rating -- also easily better than any combination that have played more than them.
The Warriors really have something going right now in these non-Curry minutes, but it all starts with Butler who remains incredibly impactful despite the franchise's underwhelming record to this point of the season.