Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler Send Message to Warriors Teammate After Lakers Game ?

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Oct 22, 2025 10:24 PM ET

Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler led the Golden State Warriors to a 119-109 season-opening win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Other Warriors contributed strongly, with Kuminga, Hield, Green, and Payton providing valuable support.
Curry praised Payton’s effort online; Butler responded playfully, referencing a missed layup.

Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler turned in a strong performance in the Golden State Warriors’ season-opening win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night. Curry scored 23 points, along with a rebound, four assists, three steals and three triples. Butler was even more impressive, registering 31 points on 7-of-14 shooting, five rebounds, four assists, a steal and one three-pointer, leading Golden State to a 119-109 victory against Luka Doncic and Co.

It was a statement win for the Warriors, who took down a championship hopeful side in the Lakers on opening night. Curry and Butler made their intentions this season abundantly clear with their performances.

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) reacts as he warms up before a game.John Hefti-Imagn Images

Other players contributed for the Warriors on Tuesday night, too. Jonathan Kuminga (17 points, nine rebounds, six assists), Buddy Hield (17 points, five treys) and Draymond Green (eight points, seven rebounds, nine assists) all chipped in.

One player who provided quality minutes off the bench for head coach Steve Kerr was guard Gary Payton II, who signed a one-year, $3.3 million extension with the Warriors in the offseason. The 32-year-old veteran logged just 12 minutes against the Lakers, but contributed six points, two rebounds, an assist, a steal one block and came in with his usual burst of energy.

Curry took to social media on Wednesday to send a message to Payton following their win at Crypto.com Arena in L.A.

“GP with me @garydwayne” Curry wrote, sharing a slo-mo video of Payton’s assist that led to a triple for the former back-to-back MVP.

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A post shared by Wardell Curry (@stephencurry30)

Butler jumped on the comments section to send a message himself, although his was more of the trolling variety.

“post the layup @garydwayne ’d” demanded Butler, referencing Payton’s point-blank miss in the first quarter.

Payton is no star, but he is expected to play a key role in Coach Kerr’s rotation this season. Last year, the 6-foot-2 guard averaged 6.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 15.0 minutes per contest.

The Warriors are back in action on Thursday. The host Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets at Chase Center, with tipoff scheduled at 10:00 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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