Rockets vs Warriors G3 Preview: Butler doubtful due to injury Can Jalen Green break out again?

At 8:30 a.m. Beijing time on April 27, the Warriors will face the Rockets at home to kick off the third game of the series. In the first two games, the two teams played to a 1-1 draw. Butler, who is injured in G2, is currently in doubtful form.

In the G2 game, the Warriors lost to the Rockets 94-109. During the game, Butler landed on his back while scrambling for a rebound and was diagnosed with a deep gluteal contusion after the game. Butler joined the Warriors in February and helped turn the team around the season. Due to this injury, Butler's availability in G3 and beyond will likely not be determined until the game starts.

Curry suffered a similar injury in March, which caused him to miss two games. The Warriors lost both of those games, on the road to the Hawks and the Heat. After learning that Butler's X-rays showed no fractures, Curry said that his right-hand man would not be able to conclude that he would miss the game.

"The last time I had a contusion, it was really a matter of tolerating pain," Curry said. Eventually, you could play with an injury. ”

Including those two playoff games, Butler has a 24-8 record in 32 games for the Warriors. In the previous G1, Butler contributed 25 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals. G2 Butler's sudden injury gave Kuminga a chance to play. He was sent on the court for 26 minutes and scored 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting.

Without Butler, the Warriors not only returned to their previous state of over-reliance on three-point shooting on the offensive end, but also declined on the defensive end.

Jalen Green scored 38 points in G2 and hit 8 of 18 three-point shots, and the Rockets' three-point shooting percentage improved from 20.7% in Game 1 to 37.5% in Game 2. In Game 2, they scored 45 points on three-pointers, compared to just 18 in the first loss.

After his first two NBA playoff games, Jalen Green improved his three-point shooting from 0-of-4 shooting in the first game to 8-of-18 shooting in Game 2, attributing his own growth rather than Butler's absence.

Jalen Green said: "In the first game, the lights were bright, there was a lot of spectators, the court looked big. So I didn't really have a chance to stabilize and my legs were still a little shaky. I felt like I responded well in the second race. ”

At the same time, the absence of an impactful, foul-provoking player like Butler allowed the Warriors to shoot 11 more three-pointers (43) in Game 2 than they did in Game 1 (32), which led to a significant drop in overall shooting percentage from 47.4 percent to 41.3 percent.

Jalen Green said that whether Butler plays or not, the Warriors face a Rockets team with a different defensive style in Game 2.

Speaking about the Rockets' game plan, Jalen Green said, "Be proactive and put pressure on the ball carriers. All the coaches told us that they [the Warriors] were too relaxed in the first game and were able to execute the tactics smoothly and stuff like that, so we just wanted to put more pressure on them. ”

List of injuries and illnesses

Rockets: Landale, Tate are out

Warriors: Butler and Payton Jr. are doubtful

ESPN predicts the win rate: Rockets 42.5%, Warriors 57.5%