Category: Golden State Warriors

By Shawn Whelchel

With the aid of a third quarter outburst, the Hawks nearly played spoiler to the Warriors historic night. But the Splash Brothers found the bottom of the net late in the game to secure their record-setting 50th win of the season with a 102-92 victory in Atlanta.

The Warriors path to becoming the fastest team to 50 wins in NBA history got off to a good start Monday night, with the squad jumping out to a 19 point lead at the half. Atlanta entered the locker room room looking as if they had no answer for Golden State on either end of the court.

But the Hawks refused to rollover, using a third quarter flurry to turn the tables on Golden State, effectively giving them a taste of what they’ve done to so many other teams during the final six minutes of the frame. Facing their largest deficit of the game- at 23 points- Atlanta broke out for a torrid 28-6 run before closing out the third, reigniting their team and the crowd at Philips Arena.

Atlanta would use their momentum to jump out to an early three-point lead in the fourth before Golden State would regroup and refocus their efforts. With the game slipping away from them, the Warriors’ big players would go on to make big plays, as Steph Curry and Klay Thompson would hit some crucial shots-including Thompson’s three ball to regain the lead- to shift the tide in their favor. Aiding Thompson and Curry’s efforts in the backcourt, C Andrew Bogut would use his size to come up with key blocks and a steal down the stretch, helping to stymy the Hawk’s scoring outburst before they sizzled out to just 17 points in the final frame.

Curry lead all scorers with 36 points on 14-of-22 shooting in the hard-fought win, followed by Thompson’s 27 points. Hampered by a nagging achilles injury, Bogut would put through just 3 points, but came up big for Golden State with his fourth quarter defense.

Following an interesting night against the Clippers, it was the second consecutive game that Golden State nearly lost control of. Part of this came at the Warriors insistence to live-and die- by the three ball. The tone was set early after a wide-open Curry passed up an easy look under the net to kick it out to a waiting Draymond Green behind the arc for the bucket. The Warriors would finish the night with 45 attempts from downtown, connecting on just 31.1 percent of those tries. Golden State’s 1-for-11 shooting from three point range in the third was part of their downfall, but Thompson and Curry’s sharpshooting in the fourth also helped to salvage the game.

Golden State’s win keeps them in contention to surpass Michael Jordan and the 1995-96 Chicago Bull’s record of 72 wins. The Warriors’ road trip continues with a matchup against the Miami Heat on Wednesday at American Airlines Arena.

by David Zizmor

OAKLAND–It’s going to be tough this is the last really long road trip of the season for the Golden State Warriors. You could call it like a seven gamer because of the Phoenix game right before the All-Star break. Let’s not really call it that because the Warriors had a week and half off until the Portland game that Friday.

So this trip is really a six game road trip they start in Portland this Friday and they play the Clippers in LA this Saturday and they kind of do a tour of the South East when they go to Atlanta, Miami, Orlando and have three games in four days. Then they close it out with a barnburner in Oklahoma City with the Thunder.

It is a tough road trip these are all good teams there’s not really a stinker among them Orlando is probably the least of those teams but even they have their moments their not completely incompetent like the Philadelphia 76ers. You look at the teams on this list Portland is sitting there right in the seventh spot in the Western Conference their 27-27. The Clippers are up to number four.

David Zizmor does the weekly Warriors podcast for http://www.sportsradioservice.com click below to listen

By Shawn Whelchel

The first meeting of the season between the two Western Conference titans did not disappoint, as the Golden State Warriors hung on for a hard-fought victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday, clinching a 116-108 victory at home.

The game was a rollercoaster ride from the start, as the Warriors overcame a sluggish start to pull out to a 20-point lead over the Thunder in the second quarter, making it look like another pull-away victory for the defending NBA champions. But the dangerous Thunder would not let their foot off the gas, fighting back with a strong second half to tie it in the fourth quarter.

But despite shooting just 38 percent from the field, including an uncharacteristic 1-of-9 from beyond the arc, the league’s MVP rose to the occasion late in the game, helping to lead his team on a 12-4 run that would seal Golden State’s 41st consecutive home win.

Picking up the slack for Curry-who still added quality numbers, including 26-points and 10 assists despite shooting just 10-of-26 from the field- four other Golden State players scored in double-digits on the night, showcasing the Warriors’ balanced offensive attack that makes them so dangerous. Harrison Barnes followed curry with 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting, while Klay Thompson-who drained a clutch three-pointer down the stretch for Golden State- added 18 of his own.

But in a matchup between the current MVP and former MVP of the NBA, it was Kevin Durant who stole the show, as the dynamic forward poured in a game-leading 40-points on the night, helping to keep his team’s hopes alive. Russell Westbrook earned 27 points as well despite an off-night from the field. The All-Star guard shot just 8-of-22, but added in nine points from the stripe.

The Warriors overcame a statistical anomaly to earn their win, as the league’s leader in three-point percentage shot a grizzly 26.9-percent from beyond the arc on the night, putting through just 7-of-26 attempts. But with the long-ball failing to work for them, the NBA champions adapted, deciding to take the fight straight to the Thunder to net 58 of their points in the paint.

With the Warriors and Durant being linked to each other by the rumor mill this week, Saturday’s game was a perfect showcase for both parties. Durant- who is rumored to have Golden State as the front-runners for his services either before or after he hits the free agent market- showed his potential suitors his knack for scoring that makes him one of the most dangerous players in the game. Meanwhile, the Warriors showed Durant exactly why they are the current NBA champions. With two more matchups scheduled for the remainder of the season, you can be sure that both parties will be looking to put their best foot forward.

by David Zizmor

Prior to going to Washington to face the Wizards the Golden State Warriors Steph Curry was not having the kinds of two games that he wanted and a dose of going to the Nation’s Capital and playing the Wizards allowed Curry to showcase his talents scoring 51 points and also with the knowledge that he was going to the White House on Thursday to meet the President to receive the congratulatory speech on being the NBA Champions from last season.

Curry knows a big stage when he see it and he dropped seven three pointers in the first quarter, Curry had his normal lights out electric performance and kind of had a duel lately because the Wizards John Walls the point guard for Washington a fellow All-Star had a great game in his own right he scored 41 points.

David Zizmor does the Warriors podcast commentary for http://www.sportsradioservice.com each week

https://soundcloud.com/sports-radio-service/golden-state-warriors-podcast-with-david-zizmor-thu-feb-4-2016