While they were always up against it following Jimmy Butler's early injury, there were few positives for the Golden State Warriors anyway in a Game 2 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.
Butler's exit allowed the Rockets to load up even more heavily on Stephen Curry, having kept the 2x MVP to 20 points on 6-of-15 shooting while also forcing him into a game-high six turnovers.
Quinten Post showed positive signs for the Warriors in the second-half
If there was one positive for the Warriors as the game progressed, it was Quinten Post who got the start in the second-half in Butler's absence. After a quiet zero-point, 12-minute playoff debut on Sunday where he often look overawed, the rookie center displayed some of the traits that had made him so valuable to Golden State over the second-half of the regular season.
Post's elite 40.8% 3-point shooting officially arrived on the playoff stage in what could become a real factor over the remainder of the series. After The Ringer's Bill Simmons claimed the Rockets would leave Post open until he started making them pay, the 25-year-old stood up to that exact challenge in going 4-of-7 from beyond the arc in the second-half.
QP has four treys tonight 🔥 pic.twitter.com/yv8UaXUX0R
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 24, 2025
Post's 12 points matched Moses Moody for the second-highest of any Warrior after Curry, with the Rockets evidently starting to respect him more the further the game went on. The seven-footer's defense and rebounding was more of a question mark, albeit those elements were already works in progress during the regular season anyway.
Post said in the post-game (via Dalton Johnson) that "it's definitely on me" in regard to a game-high 38 points from Houston guard Jalen Green. The former second overall pick was allowed to isolate against Post on multiple occasions out on the perimeter and subsequently took advantage, though that might be on Steve Kerr's defensive strategy more so than the individual player.
Kerr said during the post-game that "if Jimmy's out, we have to re-think everything." That will probably begin with going bigger, starting Post and generating more 3-point shooting on the floor as was they chose to do in the second-half on Wednesday.
All of a sudden the 52nd overall pick may be in for a significant role, having showcased on Wednesday that he could be up to the task as a rare and perhaps sole positive from the 15-point defeat.