Post Game Party: Feisty Warriors pass the vibe check, come on strong late to beat Nuggets
Wiseman looks rusty in return, but still very, very big
The Golden State Warriors buried the Denver Nuggets with a strong 3rd quarter, and then held them off with some late heroics for their second consecutive wins. Just a few weeks ago, it was a listless Warriors team that seemed to fold late, but tonight it was Denver (playing their fourth game in five nights that crumbled under the big end of game pressure as they helplessly watched Golden State peel off a 15-2 run to seal the game.
Some huge plays from Curry — who took over in the 3rd quarter:
He had 34 points and 9 rebounds on the evening. Curry was having one of those nights where it wasn’t possible to stop him, and when that force is combined with some willing and able teammates, good things happen all over the place.
But it was the late back-to-back daggers from Poole — finally able to capitalize on the space created by Curry’s gravity that sent people to the exits before the clock ran all the way out tonight:
For those that watched, James Wiseman’s return went pretty much as expected. He looked extremely rusty at times, but also bigger and faster than anyone has a right to be. He’ll play one more game for them this weekend, and it sounds like the presumption is that Wiseman will join the Warriors (along with Draymond Green) early next week.
Thoughts on Wisemans First Game
1) Flashed lack of hands which was a problem early in his season but he improved as time went on so hopefully he hasn't regressed
2) Showed enhanced timing on screens and knowing when to hand off/screen within the flow of the offense even if his decision making of when to roll could still use some improvements
3) Noticeable increase in bulk which allowed for him to not get knocked around when going for rebounds (should have had far more than six but his teammates kept stealing them). The next step for him is improving his positioning because he's strong enough that once he gets it he can't simply get booted from the spot
4) Flashed two left handed hook shots + a face up midranger which were within his wheel house last year but were nowhere near this smooth/quick.
5) Defensively he left a lot to be desired as he was consistently late to help rotations resulting in uneffective contests + his pick and roll drop coverage leaves FAR too much space for a midrange jumper and will have Wiseman eaten alive in the NBA
6) Was fantastically productive despite slow start dropping 18 points in like 17 minutes which has me looking forward to how he can do on Sunday
JK season per36:
20.4 pts / 6.9 reb / 1.8 ast / 2.4 tov / 1.0 stl / 0.8 blk
.610 TS% / .347 3pt% / .693 FT%