Category: Golden State Warriors

One of the things we realize through this Kevin Durant injury is the Golden State Warriors bench is thin. Last year they had players like Leandro Barbosa or Marreese Speights those guys are great but the Warriors wanted a veteran presence and head coach Steve Kerr trusted they could come in and make things work and even with a guy like Andrew Bogot they had slightly more experience on the bench. It’s not quite the case especially in the front court where Durant played where they were counting on really young guys.

The bench: Patrick McCaw plays in the two and three, Kevon Looney he’s shown flashes but he hasn’t been consistent they just don’t have a ton of depth up front and some of the things like we said Durant he’s a singular talent you just can’t lose a guy like that and expect things to go smoothly. He’s an amazing basketball player whose having a great season and you talk with guys whose in the running with him for MVP certainly for first team All NBA on both ends of the floor on offense and defense nobody can compare with him.

David Zizmor does the Warriors podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

By Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- The Golden state Warriors, behind the stellar play of Draymond Green, rallied from a 16-point deficit late in the third quarter to defeat the Sixers 106-104. The game was a thriller from start to finish. The Warriors won the first quarter 35-34 but trailed by one-point at the end of the first half 59-58. Klay Thompson led the Dubs with 19 and Steph Curry added 14. The lead changed hands several times in the half and the Sixers were able to score points in the paint easily. The Dubs made 7 three-pointers and made 17 free throws to keep the game close as the shot just 39% from the floor. The Sixers, on the other hand, shot 47% from the floor and made 7 more field goals than the Dubs.

In the third quarter, one that is usually owned by Golden State, saw the wheels come off the Dubs’ express. The Sixers held the Dubs scoreless for over 3 1/2 minutes and led 84-69 late in the quarter. The Dubs rallied and closed the game to minus 12 after 3 periods of play trailing 90-78. The Sixers were playing with a lot of confidence heading into the final 12 minutes of play. The Warriors, especially Draymond Green and Steph Curry, had other thoughts. The Dubs went on a 15-1 run to take a one-point lead 92-91. The Sixers pushed back and regained the lead 96-95. Steph hit a three to propel the Dubs ahead 98-96 but Philly knocked down a three and led 99-98. That would be the last time the Sixers would be ahead. Steph made another three and Matt Barnes hit a three from the right corner to increase the lead to five 104-99. The Sixers closed the deficit to one but Draymond made two big free throws. Matt Barnes had a chance to ice the game but he missed a dunk after the Dubs intercepted an inbound pass. Draymond Green made a smart play as he intentionally fouled Dario Saric with just 2.6 seconds left. Saric made the first free throw. He missed the second hoping to get a rebound out to a teammate but the Ball ended up in Steph’s hands as the Dubs held on to win 106-104.

Game Notes and Stats- The star of the game, without question, was Draymond Green. He was a force on defense as he had 8 rebounds, 4 steals, and a career-high 6 blocks in the game. He scored 20 points and had 8 assists as he literally willed his team to victory. Earlier in the game, Draymond told his teammates that “you have to dig your way out.” Steve Kerr remarked that “everybody stepped it up” on defense. He also said that with “more defensive pressure, there are more made shots” on offense. He also said that the win will give the Dubs “more momentum.”  The Warriors outscored the Sixers 28-14 in the fourth quarter.The Warriors snapped a 3-game losing streak and improved to 53-14. Steph found his game in the fourth quarter and ended up with 29 points. He made 5 3-point shots in 13 tries. Klay Thompson added 28. Matt Barnes led the bench with 10 and Andre Iguodala added 7. Leading scorers for the Sixers were Dario Saric, who is a candidate for Rooke of the Year, knocked down 25. Jhalil Okafor had 22,  Richaun Holmes,14 and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot 10.The Sixers fall to 24-43.

The Dubs meet the Orlando Magic Thursday night at Oracle Arena. Game time will be at 7:30 pm.

by Jerry Feitelberg

Atlanta- The Golden State Warriors were blitzed by the Atlanta Hawks in the first quarter of the game in Atlanta. The Hawks, coached by Mike Budenholzer, had lost two games in a row at home and wanted to get untracked against the Dubs. The game started well for Atlanta but they were not happy at the end. The Hawks outscored the Dubs 42-35 as Dennis Schroder was on fire. He made five 3-point shots in just 12 minutes of action. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson were ice cold. However, the bench, sort of maligned this year as they did not perform as well as they did last year, came to life in the second quarter. They were led by the veteran Andre Iguodala who turned up his game several notches Monday night. Ian Clark also made his presence felt as he tallied 10 points. Klay Thompson, who was saddled with three fouls, sat out most of the quarter and did not score a point in the half. Steph Curry could not hit a three and he scored just 7. The Hawks led 53-37 but the bench including newcomer Matt Barnes and veteran Shaun Livingston as well as Iguodala, Clark, David West, JaVale McGee was able to close the deficit to just 4 points trailing 55-51. The Hawks increased the lead to six 62-56 but the Dubs held tight and ended the first half by 5 66-61. Iguodala tallied 14 to lead the Dubs in scoring. In fact, the Warrior bench scored 41 of the team’s 61 points. The starters contributed just 20.

The Warriors, who have dominated third quarters all season, took it to Atlanta. Klay Thompson made some baskets, Steph was able to make threes and the Warriors defense was superb. They took the lead for good when Steph hit a three to give them the advantage 72-20. They never trailed again in the game. Patrick McCaw hit 2 3-pointers. Klay, Steph, and Andre put the Dubs up by 4 at the end of three periods of play 94-90.

The Hawks started the 4th quarter with a three to trail by one. David West made two buckets and Klay made a trey. Steph and Andre each made two more three-pointers as the Dubs led by nine 111-102 with 3:36 left to play. The Warriors defense held and they won 119-108.

Game Notes and Stats. The starters picked up the pace in the second half. Steph ended the night with 24 points, nine assists, and 4 rebounds. Draymond Green was also outstanding both on offense and defense. The numbers show 12 points, 6 assists, and 8 rebounds. Pachulia had 8, McCaw 9 points and 7 rebound, and Klay finished with 13, all in the second half. Andre Iguodala looked like the Andre of old. The veteran scored 24 points to go along with 4 assists and 5 boards. Ian Clark finished with 10. David West knocked down 10 and Matt Barnes, in his 3rd game as a Warrior, had 5 points, 3 assists, and 7 rebounds. The Warriors made 41 field goals and shot 47.1% from the floor. They made 20 3s in 44 attempts good for a percentage 45.5%. They also had 33 assists which indicated they had good ball movement and finding a man open. On defense, they had 10 steals and 4 blocked shots. Dennis Schroder scored 23 for Atlanta. Paul Milsap had 20, former Dub, Kent Bazemore added 18, and Tim Hardaway, Jr pitched in with 19.

The Warriors improve to 52-11 while Atlanta drops to 34-29. The Warriors return home to face the Boston Celtics and Isiah Thomas Wednesday night at Oracle Arena. Game time will be at 7:30 pm.

by Jerry Feitelberg

New York City- The Golden State Warriors ended a 2-game losing streak as the Splash Brothers regained their shooting touch and sent the Knicks down to defeat 112-105 Sunday afternoon at Madison Square Garden.

The Dubs played well in the first quarter as they led the Knicks 29-18. However, they went cold in the second quarter. Steph Curry was, as usual, on the bench for the first six minutes of play. The Dubs scored just 2 points in the first 5 and 1/2 minutes of action. Thy trailed the Knicks 50-49 at the end of the half.

Curry and Klay Thompson led the Warriors to an 8-point lead after three. The Dubs led the Knicks by 2 with 90 seconds left. Steph made a layup and a three-pointer with just 5.6 seconds to give them an  84-76 advantage. The Knicks closed the gap to one 97-96 but Steph found Klay, and he drained a three to put the Warriors in the driver’s seat. The Dubs held on to win 112-105.

Game Notes and Stats. Steph Curry made five three-point shots and passed Chauncey Billups for 10th place in three-point shots made.  Steph scored 31 and had 6 assists and 8 rebounds. Klay Thompson knocked down 29. Matt Barnes made his first start as a Warrior filling in for Kevin Durant. Barnes had 3 points, 2 assists, 3 boards and 1 blocked shot. Draymond Green’s stats were 13 points, 4 assists, and 7 rebounds. Zaza Pachulia pitched in with 10 points. David West scored 7, JaVale McGee had 5 points and 4 rebounds. Andre Iguodala helped out with 6 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds Patrick McCaw and Ian Clark each had 4 off the bench. The Knicks’ Derrick Rose led them with 28. Big Kristaps Porzingas had a big night with 24 points and 15 boards. Carmelo Anthony was held to just 15. Bench players Justin Holiday had 10, and Ron Baker scored 9 for New York.

The Dubs shot 45.5% from the floor and 37/1% from beyond the 3-point arc. Steph, in his last 3 games before Sunday’s contest with the Knicks, was just 4 for 31. The Knicks outrebounded the Warriors 47-35, but the Warriors were still excelled on defense as they had 11 steals and 3 blocks. The Warriors improve to 51-11 while the Knicks fall to 25-38.

The Warriors face the Atlanta Hawks Monday night in Atlanta. Game time is at 4:30 pm. They return home to face the Boston Celtics at Oracle Arena on Wednesday, then hit the road again as they fly to Minneapolis to face the Timberwolves on Friday night and play the San Antonio Spurs Saturday night in San Antonio. The schedule makers did not make it easy for the Warriors.

by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors, playing their first game since Kevin Durant was injured Tuesday night, lost to the Chicago Bulls 94-87. The Dubs NBA record of 146 consecutive wins with back-to-back losses ended. It was the first time since April 5th and April 7th, 2015 that the Warriors have recorded two losses in a row. Both of those losses came on the road in San Antonio and in New Orleans.

The Warriors finished the first half with a four-point lead 51-47. The Warriors usually play well in the second half, but that did not happen Thursday night. The Bulls behind Jimmy Butler and Bobby Portis held the Dubs to just 37 points. The Bulls outscored the Warriors 10-2 in the final 3 minutes of the game to ice the win. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson had a tough night from 3-point range. They attempted 22 but made just 3. They shot just 36.8% from the floor, and that will not get anyone a victory in the NBA.

Game Notes and Stats. The Dubs drop to 50-11. Kevin Durant will be reexamined in 4 weeks to determine if he can resume play. He suffered a Grade 2 strain of hid MCL(medial collateral ligament) and will not require surgery. He will, however, wear a knee brace night. Hopefully, the ligament will heal in 2 to 4 weeks. He also suffered a bone bruise to the top of the tibia. The bone injury could take longer to get better.. If all goes well, he could return to action the early part of April and be ready for the playoffs. The Dubs signed Matt Barnes to the vacancy on the roster. Barnes played 11 minutes and scored just 2 points and had no assists or rebounds.

Steph Led the team with 23. Klay had 13. Draymond Green, Patrick McCaw, and Andre Iguodala all were in double figures. The Bulls were led by Butler and Portis. The Warriors have to figure out a way to get back on track. They still have the best record in the NBA but are now in jeopardy of falling into the second seed which means that they will not haven home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. They are a good team. They know how to win, but they need everyone to step up to make up for the loss of their superstar, Kevin Durant.

The Warriors face the New York Knicks Sunday in the Big Apple. Game time is at 12:30 pm.