During the Golden State Warriors’ recent five-game winning streak, they used to fall behind, but they’ve come back by crawling back into the game and stealing wins. They got a little also I got used to it, apparently.
On Tuesday vs Oklahoma City ThunderWarriors flew very close to the sun. They forget that they don’t know how to win matches on the road, and so they can’t count on the same comebacks.
And, as has been the trend lately, they fell way behind early, trailing 13-2 just minutes into the game. The defense was sloppy and the attack was lethargic. But they’ve proven more than capable of getting it back. Propelled by bursts of energy from Jonathan Cuminga (who started in place of Kevon Looney) and Andre Iguodala (who was playing in his second consecutive game after returning from injury), the players returned to the competition, erasing double-digit leads and replacing them with a lead of their own while still in the running. First Quarter.
And then they got it all right, giving up a Thunder run and trailing 40-30 after the first quarter. Yes, a double-digit deficit in the first quarter alone.
The second quarter began with a flurry of stunning shots from Steve Curry, playing in only his second game since missing a month with a lower body injury. But the Warriors backed it up with a full set of neglect, and the Thunder pushed the lead to 14.
And like clockwork, the warriors again jumped into it. This time it was aggression and athleticism from Kuminga and Jordan Poole, along with brilliance Curry, sparking a 19-2 run that once again put the Warriors ahead. The second double-digit deficit was successfully defeated, though another run in the quarter by OKC gave the Thunder a four-point lead at the half.
But the third quarter is where the Warriors worked their magic recently, and it seemed for a moment that they would do it again. The slackness that defined much of the first half was gone. So did idleness. With little falling back from the Thunder’s pitchers — OKC shot 13-for-25 from deep in the first half — it was easy to see Golden State take the lead and work with it.
Instead they did the opposite. The defense was weak as the team started rotating late and arriving. The Thunder fired a whopping 15 free throws in the third quarter, and built a double-digit third lead.
This time the warriors were unable to overcome it. They grew up relying on their ability to erase leads with ease, and Thunder was just too brave in the fourth quarter to let that happen again. OKC took a big lead, taking a 15-point lead with just under seven minutes remaining.
Fueled by a visibly angry Curry, the Warriors gave him one last push. A series of forced threes and turnovers got the Dubs within six points—a two-possession game—with about a minute remaining.
But that was as close as the Warriors could get, as they dropped their second straight game on the road 137-128, and still sit with just seven wins on the road. They are currently mired in a seven-game losing streak.
Scheduling doesn’t get easier from here. They finished their road trip on Thursday vs Memphis Grizzlies. Then you head home for a pretty brutal stopover in the Bay Area, where they’ll host Milwaukee Bucks And a new look Phoenix Suns. Then she got back on the road for a five-game drive.
The momentum they carried into Sunday’s game — a five-game winning streak, a rejuvenated defense, and a Curry comeback — is now gone.
Steve was heroic in this game, finishing with 40 points, six rebounds, and seven assists, while shooting 14-for-23 from the field and 10-for-16 from outside the arc (even though he had six turnovers). Klay Thompson added 23 while Cuminga had an impressive 21-point game, and Draymond Green had a triple-double of 11 points and 11 assists.
Iguodala and JaMychal Green put in some great performances off the bench, but between the struggles of Looney and Jordan Paul, and the non-playing of Anthony Lamb (whose two-way contract expired) and Ty Jerome (who only had five days left), his off the bench was very thin.
As was the case on Sunday, the Warriors’ offensive negativity bit them in the ass. They had a solid game from distance, shooting 39.2%…but their 51 three-point attempts almost match their two-point attempts (38) and free-throw attempts (16) combined. Sure, 39.2% on threes is good, but it’s still not as effective as 71.1% on double throws or 87.5% on free throws.
But in the end, those are good numbers, and you should win when you score like this, even with 21 turnover. The Warriors lost because, for the umpteenth time this year, they didn’t know how to play defense on the road.
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