Wiseman was the Warrior worth watching in blowout loss to Durant's Nets

ACTIVATE RAGE WISEMAN!

Last night the Golden State Warriors got completely destroyed by the Brooklyn Nets, 143-113.

This game was over early…

Marcus Thompson II @ThompsonScribe

It took just 13 minutes, 7 seconds for the Warriors to get down by 30

And the defending champions didn’t have the best player in the game Stephen Curry nor the best two-way All-Star wing from last year’s NBA Finals Andrew Wiggins NOR Klay Thompson who is still recovering from Achilles rehab…

Jason Dumas @JDumasReports

When the Warriors get blown out, they get BLOWN out. It's been like that the five seasons I've been here. Just get into the tournament with a healthy starting five. They'll be fine when it's winning time. Firmly believe that.

But still, it’s never good to see your hometown team get obliterated on national television by a team as saucy as the Nets. When those dudes get going, they get GOING, led by superstar Kevin Durant.

It’s pretty great to see KD feeling spry and healthy again after many feared his career was over after he suffered his own Achilles’ rupture in a desperate bid to help the Golden State dynasty three-peat back in 2019. The former 2007 #2 overall pick lit these current Dubs up for 23 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals in 29 minutes. At 7-feet with a lethal first step, he’s a freak of nature that these Warriors had no answer for last night.

It’s hilarious to think that at one point a loud segment of very online Golden State fans were deriding him during his time as a Warrior for allegedly hijacking the offense and making Curry less effective. Ethan Sherwood Strauss encapsulated that concern in a piece for The Athletic titled, “Can the Warriors win and keep Kevin Durant happy at the same time?”.

All that media noise over KD vs Steph was apparently enough to make the two-time Finals MVP leave and get swept by the very Boston Celtics team the Warriors vanquished in the Finals but I digress.

Honestly, I wonder if KD could sympathize with another 7-foot former #2 pick who has drawn ire from Dub Nation for not being an immediate easy fit alongside Curry. His name is James Wiseman, and he’s already being called a bust who should be traded to not waste Curry’s prime.

David Dennis Jr. @DavidDTSS

Fam Wiseman is just not an nba player

Last night he put up serious scoring numbers for the Dubs last night despite being down a billion points. He tallied a career high 30 points in 28 minutes off the bench on 12-of-14 shooting from the field. He added six rebounds, two assists, and a block with only one turnover.

Interesting highlight here. That looks like an NBA player to me! Let’s take a look at some choice commentary from other observers with internet connections:

Jake Clark @mrclarkinc

If only scoring garbage time points was what GS needed from the center. Y’all keep looking at points instead of defense, passing, screens. If he was a horrible score but a solid defender, he’d probably be the Dubs starting center.

Cyrus Saatsaz @DogSurfRoadshow

What a shocker that when you give @BigTicket_JW minutes he actually produces. Scored a career high 30 points tonight on 12/14 shooting. https://t.co/ud6F0ern4l

Yes yes why didn’t Wiseman stop the entire Brooklyn Nets team by himself. Meanwhile, Draymond Green and Kevon Looney (the defensive anchors and starters) were on the floor and the team was down 40 at half HMMMM.

Rob Perez @WorldWideWob

Holiday eggnog + Hennessy rant incoming, folks. You know what’s weird to me? When LeBron James was scoring garbage time points against the Warriors in the NBA Finals people were begging for him to get the Finals MVP trophy. And Russell Westbrook won an MVP chasing triple-double stats for an irrelevant OKC Thunder team. Let’s not all of a sudden stop recognizing ridiculous box score numbers because they came in a loss, that’s Karl Malone’s entire legacy!

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA

I'm not out on James Wiseman. I am, however, out on James Wiseman with the Warriors. It's never going to happen for him there. I think he can still be a player. Young centers often take a while, but the Warriors don't have a while. I think he's moved by the trade deadline.

It’s amazing to me that the team has three All-Stars from last season (February was just 10 months ago!) and a championship proven core (June was 6 months ago!) that has literally broken basketball, and yet somehow their championship window is closing because they suck in December.

I don’t give a damn if this team claws in to the playoffs as an 8th seed, that just means the ghosts of Baron Davis and Stephen Jackson past will float to Chase Center and guarantee we destroy the #1 seed in the first round. If this team is at all healthy and get another four months of development for guys like Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, and Jordan Poole? I’m betting on them every time.

It’s time to activate Rage Wiseman, who demands the ball and dunks on all who stand in his way. Who else is this team going to turn to with Wiggins and Curry on the mend?? ACTIVATE THE BIG FELLA.

Warriors on NBCS @NBCSWarriors

James Wiseman discusses tonight's game and his development

Oh damn I have to work today and I’m already three cups of spicy eggnog in. Oh well, I guess I better bundle up and hop on the BART train, Happy Holidays to you HQ!