Warriors get humiliated by a basketball team that is much better than they are
Do I need to say more?
If you looked at the lead up to the Golden State Warriors game against the Utah Jazz, it didn’t look like a particularly fair fight. The Warriors were coming off an ugly, ugly loss, getting shellacked by a not-good New York Knicks team by 15 points at home. The Jazz, on the other hand, were winners of seven straight, having avoided the sour stench of the loss column since Jan. 6.
And ... yeah, it played out exactly as that would lead you to believe.
Steve Kerr called a timeout just two minutes into the game, with Utah already holding a 14-0 lead. The Warriors had touched the rim just twice at that point, with an equal number of air balls.
It continued on that way, with the Jazz holding a 77-47 lead at the half. It was a laugher. It was only when both teams emptied the bench, and the Warriors back of the pine did damage (10 points and 4 assists for Jordan Poole! 8 points and 4 assists for Nico Mannion!) that the Dubs made the final score halfway respectable: 127-108, propped up unfairly by a net rating saving 36-19 final frame.
Steph Curry was good, with 24 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, and just 1 turnover, and shot 9-for-18 from the field and 5-for-10 from distance, passing Reggie Miller for second all-time on the three-point list.
Everyone else? Not so much. The rhythm on offense was disastrous. The defensive effort was putrid, and needed to be taken out to the trash. The starting lineup, struggling so much to find anything positive, got dissected with the precision of a fish at a sushi shop.
Donovan Mitchell (23 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists in 27 minutes) and Rudy Gobert (11 points and 14 rebounds in 24 minutes) controlled the game. The Jazz starters shot 14-for-32 from distance. Utah outrebounded Golden State 57-35.
Ugly as can be.
On to the next one. Hopefully with some adjustments made.