The season over, Stephen Curry stopped before making his way out of Chase Center for a handshake and long embrace with Draymond Green. These two longtime teammates are committed to making another championship run together, and now with Jimmy Butler by their side, knowing there might not be too many opportunities left. Curry expressed sadness at how Golden State’s season ended, with him on the bench unable to help because of a hamstring injury. The Warriors were eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves in a 121-110 Game 5 loss Wednesday night in the Western Conference semifinals — Golden State’s fourth straight game without Curry because of a strained left hamstring since he was hurt in the second quarter of Game 1 last week. At 37 and with 16 NBA seasons to his name, Curry realizes NBA titles and postseason berths are no longer guaranteed and that there could only be a handful of chances remaining for him, Butler, Green, and Steve Kerr as coach. Steph Curry said “everything was aligned” for his Game 6 return. Just needed to clear some final testing. Here is sound from his exit interview on his summer and the two-year window ahead pic.twitter.com/nPDYv6uC9A — Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) May 15, 2025 “All we wanted was a chance, and to finish the year like we did, to sneak in the playoffs and win that first round, there’s a lot to be proud of for sure, considering where we were,” Curry said. “But definitely disappointed, and frankly just sad that I wasn’t out there able to play. We have, hopefully, a bright future in terms of coming back next year and trying again.” Golden State wound up 29-15 since Butler’s first game Feb. 8 at Chicago, 23-8 in the regular season, a play-in win against Memphis, and 5-7 through two playoff series. Butler blended into the system beautifully, and he’s not convinced this core group has a two-year window to win it all. “Yeah, and then if we win some, it could be longer than that because I still think that we have a lot of great basketball left ahead of us,” he said. “I don’t think this age thing is anything, the way that everybody is taking care of their bodies, doing right. I think the potential is there.” For now, Curry plans to take a basketball break and focus on family. He averaged 24.5 points, 6.0 assists, and 4.4 rebounds playing 32-plus minutes per game. If people are calling him the old guy these days, he’s fine with that. “One, it’s an ultimate compliment because it’s part of the level that you’re playing at. Like, ‘Oh, he’s still doing it at this age,’” Curry said. “Two, it’s a reminder of your basketball mortality and appreciating every moment that you have. That’s why the way this ended was emotional as it was, not being able to play in those big games, because you don’t know how many more opportunities you will have.”