Steph Curry Tells Touching Story Of Surprising Jimmy Butler By Wearing His Shoes

Steph Curry tells touching story of surprising Jimmy Butler by wearing his shoes originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Jimmy Butler usually is the one doing the surprising.

Remember when the six-time NBA All-Star broke out “Emo Jimmy” for the Miami Heat’s Media Day in 2023 or launched his own coffee brand in the “bubble” in 2020?

Well, it was his Warriors teammate, the one and only Steph Curry, who got Butler this time. Back when the sharpshooter entered his own sneaker free agency and had the entire league wondering what kicks he’d be rocking on any given night, Curry stunned Butler when wearing a pair from his signature line with Li-Ning during a game.

“I think the first time I wore a shoe other than my own in an actual game, which was the [Li-Ning Jimmy Butler JB4 “Dark Knight”],” Curry said on his YouTube channel when asked about which pair of sneakers he wore that surprised people the most. “Those, even my own teammates, nobody knew I was actually going to wear another shoe outside of mine until literally right when we went to the starting lineups, and we were in the circle.

“We do like this little dance, and everybody’s getting hype, and then (ex-Golden State fan favorite Buddy Hield) pointed down and is like, ‘Oh, look at–,’ and then Jimmy looked down; he lost his mind because he didn’t even know, because everybody’s kind of in their own mode, getting ready for the game. I’ll remember that moment for the rest of my life, just because it was kind of from a teammate-to-teammate perspective of being able to show love.”

Butler had no idea that Curry was rocking his very own kicks during an actual 2025-26 NBA regular-season game for the world to see.

And, while Curry might be partnering with Sotheby’s to admirably auction off his sneaker free agency collection for his own EAT. LEARN. PLAY. Foundation, the four-time NBA champion will be able to cherish the memories from his past season’s shoe game for the rest of time.

“The fact that I made it all the way to tip off and he had no clue I was rocking his shoes,” Curry said, “those types of moments are always fun because you create a memory out of nothing.”

Jimmy Buckets truly had no clue — and Curry will keep the moment with him forever.

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