After the Warriors were blown out by the Timberwolves in Game 2 of their playoff series, Golden State fans seemed in a panic. How could the Dubs remain competitive against Anthony Edwards and the rest of Minnesota if Steph Curry were out until Game 5? Dwyane Wade had a suggestion for Golden State, one that they seemed to have listened to.
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“I need to see a little different game plan,” said Wade on an episode of his WY Network podcast. “I need to see a game plan that obviously features Jimmy Butler and Jonathan Kuminga. I need to see Jonathan Kuminga get featured because he is one guy on that side (Minnesota) that cannot guard.”
Wade went on to explain that Butler plays the game “the right way” because he’s passive and lets the game come to him. He added that Jimmy won’t try and shoot ten shots in a row because his mentality is to be passive. “You need someone else without that mentality,” the Hall of Famer explained. “Let the young fella rock.”
Well, it seemed that Steve Kerr and the Warriors listened. Butler dropped 18 points in the first half, while Kuminga had 12. Not only that, but Kuminga was being aggressive just as Wade wanted him to be, which helped give the former four-time NBA Champs a 42-40 lead at the break. Wade clearly seemed proud of the take, as he re-shared the clip at halftime on his Instagram stories.
DWade recalls his pointers for Warriors for Game 3 pic.twitter.com/EeqkQYgFIq
— What are (W)NBA Celebs Upto? (@NBACelebsUpdate) May 11, 2025
Whether the Warriors win Game 3 without Curry remains to be seen. The Wolves are currently up 86-82 in the 4th quarter. At this point Butler has 33 and Kuminga has 24, so the second half strategy for the Dubs seemed similar to the first.
But will it be enough? The biggest difference for the Warriors is that they eased up on the three-point shot in Curry’s absence. Unfortunatley, the Wolves are shooting the tre much better than they had been earlier in the playoffs.
If the Warriors somehow pull this out, Steve Kerr should subscribe to Wade’s podcast and get some more free coaching advice.
