Amen Thompson undercuts Jimmy Butler: Accidental contact or dirty foul?

As expected, the Houston Rockets turned up the defensive pressure and got more physical with the Golden State Warriors to even their NBA playoff first-round series at 1-1 with a 109-94 victory at Toyota Center on Wednesday night.

The Rockets rode a 38-point outburst from Jalen Green, shot better from 3-point range (15 of 40, 37.5 percent) and dominated the boards again with a 47-33 rebounding advantage. One play in particular impacted the game's outcome.

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Late in the first quarter, Rockets forward Amen Thompson missed a jumper in the lane and tried to follow his shot. He lost his balance while forcing his way through Draymond Green's box out and crashed into a leaping Jimmy Butler, who was in midair trying to grab the rebound.

Thompson undercut Butler, who had his legs taken out and landed hard on his backside. Butler laid on the court in pain before eventually getting to his feet to shoot free throws. He made one of two from the line and then immediately went to the locker room.

Jimmy Butler hit the ground hard after being undercut by Amen Thompson 😳 pic.twitter.com/Icd2wBF50U
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 24, 2025

Butler had his injury diagnosed as a pelvis contusion, and he did not return to the game. Golden State head coach Steve Kerr said Butler felt he was "going to be fine," but an MRI on Thursday will determine the 35-year-old forward's availability for Saturday's Game 3 in San Francisco.

Kerr also didn't think Thompson intended to hurt Butler. “We didn’t think there was anything wrong with the play. It was just one of those plays," Kerr said.

On X, the fan bases of both teams engaged in a blame game assigning culpability for Butler's injury. Basketball pundits weighed in as well. The Athletic's Sam Vecenie thought the play was "terrible luck," while Dan Dibley of 95.7 The Game in the Bay Area felt Thompson's actions were "dirty" and worthy of a Flagrant 1 foul.

Nobody needs to pretend like that was a dirty play from Amen Thompson that resulted in the Butler injury. Was just trying to knife through for an OReb and got his feet tied up with Draymond who was trying to get a body on him. Terrible luck, hope Jimmy gets back for Game 3.
— Sam Vecenie (@Sam_Vecenie) April 24, 2025

The more times I watch the Amen Thompson undercut of Jimmy Butler the more I see it as a dirty play. He loses his balance a bit but extends both arms into Jimmy's legs and sends him spinning into the air. Should've been a Flagrant 1 at least.
— Dan Dibley (@dandibley) April 24, 2025

Butler's injury freed up playing time for Jonathan Kuminga, who was dropped from the Warriors' rotation after a string of inconsistent performances since returning from an ankle injury. The former lottery pick and soon-to-be restricted free agent scored 11 points on 4-for-12 shooting and recorded three rebounds and two assists in 26 minutes.

Golden State has performed like a Western Conference contender since acquiring Butler before the NBA trade deadline. Without him, the Warriors will have to scramble to stay in the series against a younger and more energetic Houston squad.

"If Jimmy's out, we have to rethink everything," Kerr said. "Like rotations and who starts and best combinations and all of that stuff."

"This is the playoffs. It's an incredibly physical sport. Stuff happens. People get injured. And it's all part of it," he added. "There's no time to lament anything. You can feel bad for your player, but you have to move on to what's next."

"If Jimmy's out, we have to rethink everything"

Steve Kerr on Golden State's rotations if Butler is out for extended time pic.twitter.com/nUIErH9std
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 24, 2025