The desperation for Jimmy Butler's return suddenly feels a little less pressing after the Golden State Warriors recorded their second-straight impressive road win on Wednesday night.
Coming off a dominant 20-point win over the Denver Nuggets, the Warriors held off a fast finishing Timberwolves in Minnesota to record a 119-114 victory behind 70 combined points from Stephen Curry and Yaxel Lendeborg.
Warriors have a new star duo in Jimmy Butler's absence
Lendeborg continues to prove himself not just a potential star of the future, but actually one of the present after the 11th overall pick followed up his career-best 31-point, 12-rebound, six-assist display against the Nuggets with another 26 points and nine rebounds in Minnesota.
It was the Curry show through the final three-quarters though, with the two-time MVP proving he's still one of the league's elite players with 44 points, eight rebounds and six assists in just under 32 minutes.
Curry was at his explosive best in the second-quarter, helping his team open up a 16-point half-time lead . With the Timberwolves' own superstar, Anthony Edwards, out following a knee procedure, the hosts struggled for offense with just 48 points through the first 24 minutes.
Minnesota made the game interesting down the stretch and had the chance to make it a one-point game in the final 20 seconds, evoking anxiety from Golden State fans who saw their team give up a 12-point lead with under four minutes remaining last week at home against the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Warriors wouldn't surrender their lead on this occasion, rounding out a five-point win that has them feeling much better about themselves after a rough 0-3 start which, combined with their injury issues, painted a fairly bleak outlook of the season ahead.
Warriors could thrive even before Jimmy Butler's return
Most thought Golden State would be a .500 team or worse until Butler returns, yet that wasn't accounting for Lendeborg becoming a legitimately dominant player from year one. With he and Curry leading the way on the road against a good team even minus Edwards, perhaps the Warriors have a chance to actually lay an excellent foundation before Butler comes back.
The Warriors were also without another starter in Gui Santos on Wednesday night, with veteran forward Goerges Niang getting the start and playing over 22 minutes. Fellow free agent signing Brandon Williams was the only other Golden State player to score double figures, going for 11 points in 14 minutes off the bench.
Is this a completely different Warrior team than the one that lost by 22 to the Los Angeles Lakers on opening night less than a week ago? We're about to find out as the two teams meet again at Chase Center on Friday night.
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