Warriors pick up another statement win in victory over Bucks
Warriors pick up another statement win in victory over Bucks
I wouldn't mind this NBA Finals matchup...
The Golden State Warriors picked up a morale boosting victory Saturday night, dominating the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks 122-109 in Chase Center. I’d classify this victory as a statement win for a few reasons:
1.) The Bucks had completely obliterated the Dubs earlier this season in Milwaukee. Golden State needed vengeance.
2.) Giannis Antetokounmpo is arguably the most dominant physical force in the game (apologies to Joel Embiid and Jonathan Kuminga). He’s also exactly the type of player that Dub Nation cringes about facing, considering how Kevon Looney and Nemanja Bjelica are the only two healthy bigs. Greek Freak had 31 points on 17 shots (12-of-18 at the free throw line), but couldn’t keep the Bucks anywhere in striking distance after halftime. He was also a -26 plus/minus, proof that the Dubs defensive identity still exists despite lacking defensive anchor Draymond Green and athletic giant James Wiseman.
3.) Stephen Curry had a season low eight points. Before our overeager members of Dub Nation start writing paragraphs talking about Curry’s “age related decline”or how coach Steve Kerr takes his greatness for granted and won’t support him by spamming pick-and-roll, let’s pause to celebrate. The Dubs just dominated the defending champions without Curry going supernova with scoring because his teammates felt empowered to go out and get buckets.
Kerr’s decision to start Curry, Klay Thompson, and Jordan Poole alongside Andrew Wiggins and Kevon Looney paid huge dividends against the defending champions. The floor spacing was UNREAL.
If I look back over this season I feel there’s a couple other statement wins that affirm my long held belief that if this team is anywhere near healthy the league is in complete trouble.
Opening Night comeback vs Lakers
There was a time when we all thought the Lakers would be a contender. The Warriors were the first ones to rip the mask off L.A. like a Scooby Doo villain and reveal that Showtime was NOT back.
The Los Angeles Lakers led the Golden State Warriors 84-74 with just under three minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter. Up until that point, the plucky and shorthanded Dubs had given a quality fight, but the Lakers were surging dangerously close to blowing the game open.
But the Warriors weathered the storm and unleashed a nasty 47-30 run over the final 14:48 minutes of gametime, keyed by a gritty defensive effort and a fluid offensive attack that stunned the Lakers in front of their fans on opening night. Final score: Warriors 121, Lakers 114.
Warriors derail Chicago’s hype train
GSW got off to a hot start this season, but the doubters still wondered what would happen when they faced a REAL time…like the Chicago Bulls?
Yes, the Golden State Warriors completely destroyed the Chicago Bulls 119-93 last night in Chase Center to obtain a sterling 11-1 record.
But going into last night’s game between the two teams with the top records in their respective conferences, let’s not forget there was a palpable sense that the Dubs were “finally gonna get challenged”.
Before the contest, ESPN ran an article glowing about the Bulls’ strides to start the season:
The Bulls are off to an 8-3 start, their best since 2012. They are one of four teams (Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz, Miami Heat) that rank in the top 10 in both offensive and defensive efficiency during this young season, a surprise for even their most optimistic projections.
Whether Chicago can sustain its early-season success is being tested in mid-November, and so far it is thriving. Even opposing players are noting how the "Bulls are back."
Bulls are back? Wellp last night they looked like they were backed into a corner absorbing haymaker after haymaker in front of a giddy Dub Nation.
Curry gets MVP chants in Brooklyn
Golden State visited their old friend Kevin Durant in Brooklyn alongside former MVP James Harden. The Dubs proceeded to unleash a beatdown of epic proportions that led to the Barclay’s crowd turning on the home team and showering Curry with praise.
When Kevin Durant departed to create his own superteam alongside Kyrie Irving and James Harden in New York, and Klay Thompson’s body broke down from stomping the league into submission, the NBA could finally relax. The Warriors’ time was up according to Patrick Beverly, and Steph was finding out how tough it was to be a lone star according to Damian Lillard. The league could finally dream of life beyond the iron fist of the Warriors dynasty.
It’s time to wake up from that dream, NBA. The Warriors just visited New York to see KD’s new team and beat the hell out of the Brooklyn Nets 117-99 to stay at the top of the NBA standings with a 12-2 record. The Dubs wiped em out before the fourth quarter started, Curry put up a scintillating performance despite being benched for fouling, and Green put on a premier defensive performance. No super team, no injury luck, and yet it’s the same result as the dynasty days. How?!
Finally beating Memphis
The Grizzlies probably are the most annoying Western Conference foe for the Dubs right now, which is what made GSW’s win over them earlier this season pretty sweet.
These Grizz were feeling a little too at home in the Chase Center, but with good reason. After all, they did end Golden State’s desperate attempt to win without Klay Thompson last year, and handed them their first loss of this fresh new season. Both games came in San Francisco.
And yet… the depleted Warriors got it done in a 113-104 victory. Let’s get into how the Dubs combined preposterously accurate long range marksmanship with some good ol’ GRIT-N-GRIND.
Christmas Day stunner in Phoenix
The Warriors bested the defending Western Conference champions in a nationally televised Christmas game. Coach Kerr pulled off a late game gamble that paid huge dividends, and I went into full detail on that moment in the recap:
Each one of the statement wins is what I’d refer to when anyone asks me for proof that Golden State is on the NBA’s shortlist of contenders. AND THEY AIN’T EVEN HEALTHY YET.
According to Basketball Reference, the most amount of games GP2 has played in a single NBA season before this season was 29 during the 2019-2020 season, averaging 14.9 minutes per game. This season, he has played 60 games and has averaged 17.1 minutes per game, the highest in his career.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/p/paytoga02.html
GP2 out going on two weeks. I’d love to understand what’s wrong.