The Golden State Warriors currently sit at 35-28 and the sixth seed in the Western Conference, having seen a major boost to their offense recently with multiple players stepping up to propel a recent hot streak.

This is due largely to the trade deadline addition of Jimmy Butler, who has used his ability to drive to the rim and draw contact to provide spacing and flow to the Warriors’ previously stagnant offense.

Butler, in providing space to the Golden State offense, has allowed the rest of the team around him to thrive. Most notably, Stephen Curry has had a monster run since the league’s return from the All-Star Break, having scored an astonishing 239 points in his past eight games.

But while Curry’s offense is always key, it’s young guard Brandin Podziemski who has steadily seemed to be stepping into a major scoring role for the Warriors, signifying a development that could be vitally important to a deep playoff run.

Brandin Podziemski could be the Warriors’ bona-fide third scoring threat

Podziemski was averaging 10.3 points, five rebounds and 3.5 assists through 49 games prior to Thursday’s injury against the Brooklyn Nets, having scored 19 points in each of his past two games that helped deliver Golden State with a major back-to-back sweep of the Charlotte Hornets and New York Knicks.

For the Warriors, this means that Podziemski is stepping into the role that the organization envisioned for him at the start of the season as the starting shooting guard. After a promising rookie year, Podziemski hit a slump entering his second season. He had seemingly lost his touch with his 3-point shot, and his offensive efficiency tanked, ultimately forcing the team to diminish his minutes drastically.

However, since his return from an almost month-long absence due to an abdominal strain in late January, he has looked renewed. His scoring touch has returned, and in addition to his 3-point shot, he has regained his finishing creativity, hitting floaters and tough lay-ups with ease.

This Podz pump fake 😮‍💨pic.twitter.com/sXysMQERbT

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 5, 2025

As Butler and Curry continue to take on dominant roles in Golden State’s offense, Podziemski’s recent step forward as a third option, and especially a second shooting option, has helped to cement their dominance over this recent stretch.

While his 3-point percentage still sits at only 31.9% on the season, a recent uptick makes him a more viable option than Buddy Hield who was utilized in the starting shooting guard position for a portion of the season.

Despite Jonathan Kuminga’s imminent return from injury, head coach Steve Kerr is set to continue with a small-ball lineup featuring Draymond Green at center and Moses Moody at power forward. While Kuminga will hopefully provide a spark to the bench unit’s offense, the starting unit will be dependent upon Podziemski to continue at this pace.

Podziemski left Thursday’s game against Brooklyn with back tightness less than a minute into the contest, but Kerr said post-game that it’s not believed to be serious and that the 22-year-old is considered day-to-day as the Warriors prepare for the start of a seven-game home-stand.