Jimmy Butler gets off to a good start with Warriors by scoring 25 points against Bulls in his debut

CHICAGO (AP) — Jimmy Butler drew the familiar “oohs” and “aahs” from the Chicago crowd when he cut backdoor for an alley-oop dunk in the opening minute.

He had enough left to take over during Golden State's decisive run with Stephen Curry on the sideline. If his debut with the Warriors is a sign of things to come, they sure will welcome it.

Butler had 25 points and four assists in his first game since a trade-deadline deal from Miami following a messy split with the Heat, helping the Warriors beat the Bulls 132-111 on Saturday night.

“He's a lion out there,” coach Steve Kerr said.

It was an emotional night for Butler.

The six-time All-Star's first game with his new team came exactly one year after the death of his father. He wore “Butler III” on the back of his jersey as a tribute to his dad and will continue to go by that “forever and ever.”

Butler's first game with the Warriors came in the city where he spent his first six seasons. On top of all that, he hadn't played since Jan. 2. The Heat suspended him three times last month, and he said he lost his joy for the game.

“I knew I was going somewhere, whether they were sending me to Flamengo down in Brazil,” he said, referring to the team in Brazil's premier league that he has said he will join after his NBA career. “But I'm glad that it is here. I am grateful to be able to play basketball for a top organization like this one."

Now, Butler gets a fresh start. In some ways, so do the Warriors.

Butler is looking for his first championship after leading Miami to two NBA Finals in six seasons. Golden State is trying to capture another one to go with the four titles it already has with Kerr, Curry and Draymond Green. The Warriors were 10th in the Western Conference at 26-26 following the win over Chicago.

“We need each other,” Kerr said.

The Warriors paid a big price for Butler, sending Andrew Wiggins to Miami as part of the five-team trade and signing their new star to a two-year, $113 million contract extension. But they see it as a worthwhile investment.

After all, Butler is one of the NBA's best two-way players, someone willing to do whatever is needed to win on a given night. In that sense, they see him as a perfect complement to Curry.

“They say opposites attract in a lot of ways in life,” Butler said. “I don't think I could be a better complement to him and vice versa. They're not leaving him ever. Probably two people would never leave him. There's so much space for everybody else. I get the easy job. I'm playing one-on-one or in so much space."

Before things turned sour with the Heat, Butler had plenty of big moments. He's Miami's regular-season leader with 13 triple-doubles and is eighth on the team’s lists of points, rebounds and assists. “Playoff Jimmy” was at his best when the games mattered most, ranking third on the Heat’s postseason scoring list and second behind only LeBron James in playoff points per game for Miami.

“Timing is everything in this league,” Kerr said. “I think we're getting Jimmy at the right time. His time in Miami expired. It ran out. You could feel it. They felt it, he felt it, so we're getting him at a time that's probably healthy for us and healthy for Jimmy.”

Butler hasn't practiced with the Warriors. He didn't participate in the morning shootaround, either, because some of the players involved in the trade had not passed their physicals.

Butler and the Warriors will need time to get used to each other. Kerr kept things simple for their first game together, giving him about three plays, but he showed his usual explosiveness, even if he was exhausted.

Butler had enough left to take over during a decisive 16-1 run that started late in the third. He scored the first seven points in the fourth, starting with a three-point play off an alley-oop dunk, with Curry on the sideline.

“The game is very, very simple here, and they make it so easy for me,” Butler said.

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Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler, left, arrives before an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler, left, arrives before an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler warms up before an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler, left, and guard Stephen Curry, right, warm up before an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler hangs from the rim after dunking during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, left, pats Warriors forward Jimmy Butler (10) on the back during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler (10) and guard Stephen Curry (30) shake hands after an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler (10) goes up to shoot during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Chicago Bulls guard Coby White, left, guards against Golden State Warriors forward Jimmy Butler (10) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is meeting with oil executives at the White House on Friday in hopes of securing $100 billion in investments to revive Venezuela’s ability to fully tap into its expansive reserves of petroleum — a plan that rides on their comfort in making commitments in a country plagued by instability, inflation and uncertainty.

Since the U.S. military raid to capture former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump has quickly pivoted to portraying the move as a newfound economic opportunity for the U.S., seizing three tankers carrying Venezuelan oil, saying the U.S. is taking over the sales of 30 million to 50 million barrels of previously sanctioned Venezuelan oil and will be controlling sales worldwide indefinitely.

It's also part of a broader push by Trump to keep gasoline prices low. At a time when many Americans are concerned about affordability, the incursion in Venezuela melds Trump’s assertive use of presidential powers with an optical spectacle meant to convince Americans that he can bring down energy prices.

The meeting, set for 2:30 p.m. EST, is currently set to occur behind closed doors, according to the president's daily schedule. “At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House,” Trump said Friday in a pre-dawn social media post.

Trump is set to meet with executives from 17 oil companies, according to the White House. Among the companies attending are Chevron, which still operates in Venezuela, and ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, which both had oil projects in the country that were lost as part of a 2007 nationalization of private businesses under Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez.

The president is meeting with a wide swath of domestic and international companies with interests ranging from construction to the commodity markets. Other companies slated to be at the meeting include Halliburton, Valero, Marathon, Shell, Singapore-based Trafigura, Italy-based Eni and Spain-based Repsol.

Large U.S. oil companies have so far largely refrained from affirming investments in Venezuela as contracts and guarantees need to be in place. Trump has suggested on social media that America would help to backstop any investments.

Venezuela’s oil production has slumped below one million barrels a day. Part of Trump's challenge to turn that around will be to convince oil companies that his administration has a stable relationship with Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, as well as protections for companies entering the market.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum are slated to attend the oil executives meeting, according to the White House.

President Donald Trump waves as he walks off stage after speaking to House Republican lawmakers during their annual policy retreat, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)