Steph Curry scores 50 points against the Phoenix Suns in another embarrassing loss on the road.
Steph Curry is transcendent, Klay Thompson is anything but, Jordan Poole takes fewer shots than JaMychal Green, and the Warriors fall to 6-9.
During Steph Curry’s breakout game against the New York Knicks in February of 2013, he scored 54 points in a Warriors’ loss. The Warriors were shorthanded that night. David Lee was suspended because of his role in a fight with the then-imposing Indiana Pacers, and Andrew Bogut didn’t play that night, so the Warriors started a rookie Draymond Green and a fading Andris Biedrins in the frontcourt.
That game was the last time, as my memory serves, that the Warriors lost a 50-point showing by Steph Curry. In some ways, the makeup of the roster is quite similar. That 2013 Warriors team had all of four veteran players see the court that night — Biedrins, Carl Landry, Jarrett Jack, and Richard Jefferson. What’s different about these two teams? Well, for one, the Warriors’ young players on the 2012-13 roster were quite good!
Steph Curry is 34 now. He’ll be 35 come playoffs. The playoffs. Quite a distant concept, huh? This Warriors team, one that employs Steph Curry at the arguable peak of his powers, is at risk of missing the playoffs if they don’t get things together soon. How might that happen? I’m not really sure. Reinforcements are not coming, barring a (necessary) trade. The Warriors’ offseason additions have been lacking, their young players are clearly not trusted by Steve Kerr, and 2/3 of their marquee backcourt has been bad, bordering on terrible, for much of the regular season.
Some notes before we get into the quarter-by-quarter “Rotation watch” segment:
Klay Thompson went 6/17 from the field and shot 3/9 on threes. He did, at least, make an effort to take some shots closer to the hoop, I guess. Klay was solid early on defense when he was matched up against Devin Booker. His footwork was crisp and he was physical without fouling, until all of a sudden he wasn’t. Once Booker started hitting tough shots over Klay, things went south. As Booker added points to his tally against Klay, it seemed as if Klay was determined to match him. Klay did hit a few catch-and-shoot threes, but his other threes were poorly-timed and an obvious source of frustration for his teammates.
Jordan Poole took... five shots tonight and didn’t make a single one. For the umpteenth time this early regular season, Poole was quiet, to the point of being willingly deferential on offense tonight. What was particularly bizarre was that Poole gladly played off-ball as Donte DiVincenzo ran the show in the Warriors’ second unit. Poole did rack up 8 assists against just two turnovers tonight, but his quiet offensive performances in the second unit are starting to feel so regular that they’re pointed, which is behavior unbecoming of someone renowned for his good attitude, excellent work ethic, and joy of the game.
Donte DiVincenzo gave the Warriors some nice minutes in the second unit tonight, particularly in the fourth quarter when he hit back-to-back threes to keep within striking distance of the Suns. DDV also made some slick interior passes to cutters during the second quarter, but the moment that the Suns began to overplay his pass on drives, they got their hands on the ball. Later in the game, DiVincenzo drove and actually tried to finish. It did not go well. I’m not even sure his shot hit the rim. DiVincenzo is a solid defender and capable passer with a streaky shot and no ability to finish (his percentage in the restricted area has declined with each passing season) and when he hits shots, he’s going to look good. But when those shots aren’t falling and teams sit back on his drives, which are really just elaborate setups for passes, his limitations will show.
Speaking of limitations, JaMychal Green seems to have a whole bunch of them. He fouls excessively. He’s on the smaller side for a 5, at least compared to the Suns’ bigs, he isn’t making three-pointers, and his athletic finishing ability seems to have declined. Green went 1/7 from the field tonight and looked small against a somewhat large Suns frontcourt. He’s still a better player than James Wiseman and I think he can hold up against smaller teams, but it’s becoming clear that Green, on a better roster, wouldn’t be a rotation staple.
One unlikely rotation staple of this Warriors’ team is Anthony Lamb. I can’t shake my moral misgivings about Lamb’s background. I also can’t believe how much I like watching him play basketball. Lamb seems to be the only guy on the Warriors’ bench who actually realizes how lucky he is to play for the Golden State fucking Warriors and you can feel it in Lamb’s every movement. He exudes relentless energy, he cheers hard for his teammates, he’s clearly emotionally invested in every second of the game, and he seems to be getting more comfortable in the Warriors’ system with each game. During preseason, I thought Lamb looked drunk every time he tried to dribble or shoot the ball. His motions still look jerky, but tonight he demonstrated impressive court vision with several kick-out passes to unexpected targets. But what impressed me most about Lamb was his defense. Lamb was out of his element trying to guard the post against Jock Lansdale — not that I blame him for this — but otherwise, he was really solid on defense. On closeouts, Lamb has exceptional balance and footwork. He flies out to shooters without getting so compromised and off-balance that shooters can glide past him to the hoop. On several possessions tonight, Lamb not only stopped a catch-and-shoot three, but then forced the would-be-shooter to put the ball on the ground, and prevented a shot at the hoop. Steve Kerr was right to close with Anthony Lamb, which is simultaneously a credit to Lamb and a scathing condemnation of this Warriors’ roster.
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