For the second game in a row, the Golden State Warriors faced an incredibly up-and-coming team that was missing their franchise star and emerged with a game-winning shot from a Splash Brother with 0.2 seconds left.
What is the probability of this happening?
This time the opponent was the Oklahoma City Thunder, who seemingly couldn’t miss a single shot before watching the Warriors claim a 141-139 victory. It was just the ninth time in franchise history – and the third time in the last 30 years – that Golden State won a game in which its opponent shot 60% or more from the field.
Don’t make a habit of it, guys, but then again, a win is a win is a win.
However, it’s time to evaluate the players. As always, grades are based on my expectations for each player, with a grade of “B” representing that player’s average performance.
Note: True Shooting Percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that takes three-pointers and free throws into account. The league average TS last year was 58.1%.
Draymond Green
29 minutes, 15 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 5 fouls, 5-for-11 shooting, 2-for-4 three-pointers, 3-for-3 free throws, 60.9% TS , -1
Green looked rejuvenated on offense this young season. Despite missing training camp and the first two games of the season, Dray’s offensive play has been some of the best he’s offered in recent years: His usual level of play is there, but in his four games he’s averaging 9.5 Scored points (even though he hasn’t played fully yet). minutes), while shooting 10 of 20 on two-pointers, 4 of 10 on three-pointers and 6 of 8 on free throws.
Like any Warrior, Green got wrecked on the other side of the court quite a bit, but I tend to attribute that more to OKC’s crazy shots than anything else.
Grade: B+
Kevon Looney
11 minutes, 4 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 4 fouls, 1-on-2 shooting, 2-on-2 free throws, 69.4% TS, -1
Looney only played 11 minutes as he struggled with fouls, but honestly, it would have been a low-minute night even if he hadn’t had foul trouble. He struggled with both the athleticism of Jalen Williams and the combination of size, wingspan and athleticism of Chet Holmgren, and it was clear early on that small lineups and Dario Sarić were both better options.
Grade: C
Andrew Wiggins
27 minutes, 17 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 foul, 6-for-11 shooting, 0-for-1 three-pointers, 5-for-8 free throws, 58.5% TS, -14
By far Wiggins’ best game this season. He set the tone for the Warriors early by being aggressive on offense, and when they tried to erase a deficit in the fourth quarter, he set the tone with some big plays on the offensive glass, where four of his five rebounds came . It was his highest point total of the season and tied for his season high in rebounds.
It wasn’t all pretty, which is why he was left out of the final lineup again, and it certainly wasn’t his best defensive day; Then again, it wasn’t for anyone!
All in all, a very encouraging performance from Wiggs, who looked much more like himself.
Grade: B+
Post-game bonus: The worst plus-minus on the team.
Steph Curry
31 minutes, 30 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 9-for-15 shooting, 5-for-10 three-pointers, 7-for-7 free throws, 83.0% TS , +5
Curry’s incredible season-opening goal continues. He increased his points total to lead the league (185), although this game technically lowered his average to “just” 30.8 points per game.
This year he is hitting 72.2% on two-shots and 46.5% on three-shots. Remember when his coach said he’s never had better offseason shooting than he did this summer? Yes, well, about that…
Curry played the role of lifesaver in this case. Whenever the Thunder tried to run away with things, Curry would come in and make a big shot. Or an unreal pass.
He had a huge layup down the stretch, with some strong defensive players, and he was a threat on the glass, setting up the 7’1 Holmgren for the game.
And of course, he had the most important shot of the night, somehow making it to the rim and contorting himself expertly for the shot that, after a few minutes of review, ended up being the game-winning shot.
You know the rule: there’s only one mark if you achieve a game winner.
Grade: A+
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points and rebounds.
Klay Thompson
33 minutes, 18 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 turnover, 4 fouls, 6-for-10 shooting, 4-for-6 three-pointers, 2-for-2 free throws, 82.7% TS, 0 plus /Minus
After the premiere, I heard a lot of grumbling from fans who were concerned that Klay was pulling the trigger and taking rash shots, similar to last year…which ultimately led to a little intervention from Green.
Curry and Chris Paul were quick to defend Thompson after that loss – still his only loss of the season – and said they liked Klay’s shots. I agreed: I thought they were good shots that just didn’t go in.
Since then? He’s 14-for-25 on tackles and 12-for-24 on threes. That will work.
He also made big plays down the stretch. Obviously his game-winning goal on Wednesday stands out, but Klay also had excellent defense late in the game (he helped force a turnover in the final minute of that game), made good decisions and passes, and had ice in his veins (38 With .1 seconds left, he made a game-winning free throw and a free throw.
And he leads the team in minutes per game! A wonderful season so far.
Grade: A-
Dario Sarić
20 minutes, 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 6-for-9 shooting, 4-for-7 three-pointers, 4-for-4 free throws, 92.9% TS , +3
With all due respect to Warriors legend and NBA champion Nemanja Bjelica, it is urgently time to retire the “Šarić is this year’s Bjelica” talk.
Šarić is similar to Bjelica, if Bjelica would be much better in almost every aspect of basketball.
Super Dario showed he can make an immediate difference off the bench, hitting three three-pointers in the first quarter and scoring a team-high 11 points in the quarter…points the Warriors desperately needed.
He also shone with his scoring chances later in the game, but it was his rebounding, passing and pace that really influenced the game. His relationship with Paul comes into its own, and the two smart, cautious and extremely talented veterans bring so much calm to the bench unit.
It took a few games to get his shooting going, but in the last two games, Šarić scored 35 points in 40 minutes, shooting 12 of 18 from the field and 7 of 12 from long range.
I have to support Liah after her phenomenal article.
Grade: A+
Jonathan Kuminga
22 minutes, 19 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 turnovers, 2 fouls, 9-for-15 shooting, 0-for-2 three-pointers, 1-for-2 free throws, 59.8% TS, +3
This was a bit of a tale of two Kumingas, for better or worse.
The positive was that Kuminga gave us the most comprehensive insight yet into his potential as a unit-changing isolation goalscorer. We’ve seen better offensive play from him, but in my eyes this was the best we’ve ever seen him fulfill the role of a top scorer. He didn’t force the action, he didn’t take bad shots, but he showed the ability to take the ball with ten seconds left on the shot clock, go to work, cook his defender and get a good look throw. The Warriors have had Wiggins and Jordan Poole in that role in recent years, and it was very exciting that Kuminga could fill that role. It’s hugely important to have a player on the bench who you can give the ball to, clear it out and trust that you’ll get a good shot.
The negative was that Kuminga didn’t do much else. He’s given it his all this season (in the good sense of the word, not the runaway sense), but this game didn’t show as much of him in terms of defense and rebounding.
But I was definitely excited about it!
Grade: B+
Chris Paul
28 minutes, 1 point, 2 rebounds, 13 assists, 2 steals, 1 foul, 0-for-6 shooting, 0-for-2 three-pointers, 1-for-2 free throws, 7.3% TS, +6
Ready for some wild stats? Here you come!
The scoring and shooting skills were abysmal, but that is literally the only blemish on his resume in his first week and a half as a Warrior. And the way he plays, a goal for Paul wouldn’t turn a bad season into a good season; It would turn a good season into an All-Star campaign.
I feel like I won’t be able to find nearly enough words this season to explain how important he is to this team. I don’t think they’ll come close to winning this game unless he slows down and controls the second unit in both halves.
Grade: A-
Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists.
Gary Payton II
22 minutes, 9 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 4-for-6 shooting, 1-for-3 three-pointers, 75.0% TS, +9
One of the things I was most looking forward to this season was seeing Payton healthy. It never worked out in Portland, and he was returned to the Dubs with a significant illness. Even after his month-long absence, it became apparent that he was not as healthy and sporty as we were used to.
I was excited to see him return to his 2021-22 form. Instead, we get something much better.
GPII has worked his way into many late-game lineups this year thanks to his outstanding defensive performance, his defensive versatility, his activity on the glass (where the rebound total never accurately reflects his impact), and his cutting.
This time a huge basket was created.
There used to be a feeling that Payton should only play sparingly, even though he excelled in his minutes. Now it feels like he just needs to play a big rotational role: and it appears he is.
Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Led the team in plus/minus.
Moses Moody
18 minutes, 8 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-for-7 shooting, 2-for-5 three-pointers, 57.1% TS, +4
Two things. First, after playing his worst game of the season on Wednesday, Moody was extremely mediocre in this one. Secondly, part of the evolution of his game is that he still does really good things even when he’s not at his best.
He will get a bad grade from me. But in years past, a subpar grade meant actively hurting the team’s chances of winning. This year, that just means he hasn’t had a particularly positive impact on their chances.
Grade: C
The court
I think it’s really great that the NBA provides its teams with special seats for tournament games during the season. If they embark on this tournament experiment, they should do their best and do things that make it clear that a game is an in-season tournament game. Make the experience different, make people pay attention, etc. etc.
It’s a great idea. I love it.
But what the chewing gum Crash Bandicoot Lego childhood coloring book Vegas light display WWE Photoshop VW Beetle is that???
Grade: F
DNPs from Friday: Usman Garuba, Cory Joseph, Jerome Robinson
Inactive on Friday: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Brandin Podziemski, Lester Quiñones
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