Player grades: Warriors vs. Nuggets

Assessing every Golden State player’s performance in their 114-105 loss to Denver.

The Golden State Warriors had an opportunity handed to them on a silver platter on Monday and, in a break from the new norm since acquiring Jimmy Butler III, they squandered it. Not only did the Dubs get to face a Denver Nuggets team that was without Nikola Jokić, Jamal Murray, and Christian Braun, but they did so on a day when the Minnesota Timberwolves lost at home to an Indiana Pacers squad that was missing Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam, and Myles Turner, while the Memphis Grizzlies lost to the Sacramento Kings.

All was in place for the Warriors to take advantage and better position themselves in the standings.

Instead, they lost 114-105. They shot a miserable 24.2% from three-point range, and an inexcusable 55.6% from the free throw line. They committed a staggering 20 turnovers, while dishing just 24 assists. And their seven-game winning streak came to a screeching halt in a remarkably ugly manner.

I’ll try to make tonight’s grades short because ... look, no one wants to dwell on this one. Break out the red pen, throw some Cs and Ds on the paper, get some sleep, and see what the Milwaukee Bucks have to offer tomorrow. That’s my plan, at least.

As always, grades are based on my expectations for each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.

Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Monday’s games, league-average TS was 57.5%.

Jimmy Butler III

32 minutes, 23 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 2 fouls, 8-for-16 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 6-for-10 free throws, 56.4% TS, -9

Butler was the primary reason why I still expected the Warriors to win the game even when there were only a few minutes remaining and they had been trailing the whole time. He brought energy and fight on a night when many of his teammates didn’t. He carried the offense at times, even if it wasn’t the most efficient showing.

He could have played better, but he was far from the reason they lost, and one of the only reasons they almost won.

Grade: B
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points and rebounds.

Draymond Green

33 minutes, 10 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 5 blocks, 4 turnovers, 5 fouls, 5-for-6 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 0-for-1 free throws, 77.6% TS, -5

A kind of funny game for Dray. He brought a bunch of energy in the second half, which was great to see. He was flying all over the court on defense, and also was the team’s most efficient scorer.

He was also a turnover machine, and my goodness were they some ugly and untimely turnovers, which were compounded by nearly fouling out.

I want to give him credit for his role in the lone good minutes of this game, but he also was too much of a catalyst for the bad moments.

Grade: C+

Quinten Post

8 minutes, 4 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal, 2-for-3 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 66.7% TS, -9

Post got the start, but with Denver playing small, it wasn’t a good matchup, and he didn’t end up playing much. He played well in his initial stint, but the Dubs needed a different look.

Grade: B

Moses Moody

25 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 2 fouls, 4-for-9 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 50.0% TS, -12

Moody did bring some fight and some energy and I’m grateful for that. But it simply wasn’t a good game for him. He couldn’t find any rhythm on offense, and looked a step slow and out of place in most facets of the game.

Grade: C
Post-game bonus: Worst plus/minus on the team

Steph Curry

36 minutes, 20 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 7 turnovers, 2 fouls, 6-for-21 shooting, 4-for-14 threes, 4-for-4 free throws, 43.9% TS, -7

There’s neither a way nor a reason to sugarcoat it: this was one of the worst games that Curry has played in a long time.

He looks like his back is hurting him, and after the game, Steve Kerr said that Curry is worn out, and the team will consider getting him some rest time. This was just one of those games where he did not have it in any way, shape, or form, and he compounded it with some truly head-scratching plays.

The fact that he seems to be dealing with something physical saves him from a fully failed grade.

Grade: D-
Post-game bonus: Led the team an assists.

Jonathan Kuminga

28 minutes, 13 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 3 fouls, 4-for-11 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 5-for-8 free throws, 44.8% TS, +6

When Kuminga slows down and plays with some patience, he turns from an exciting player into a star. This game was emphatic proof of that, as evidenced both by the times he was patient and the times he wasn’t. When he played chess, he absolutely ate Denver’s defense alive, getting easy looks at the rim and finding teammates for great looks. When he moved too fast, he struggled to finish, forced passes, and got out of control.

He deserved a better whistle, and on most nights his aggression will be better rewarded. Mostly it’s just great seeing him get his feet back under him post-injury.

Grade: C+
Post-game bonus: Best plus/minus on the team.

Buddy Hield

21 minutes, 2 points, 1 assist, 1-for-4 shooting, 0-for-3 threes, 25.0% TS, 0 plus/minus

Bad Buddy Hield game.

Grade: D

Gui Santos

14 minutes, 0 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 0-for-1 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 0.0% TS, -4

I really liked what Santos did on defense in this game, but unfortunately what he did on offense negated it, and then some.

Grade: C

Kevon Looney

15 minutes, 6 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-for-3 shooting, 0-for-3 free throws, 69.4% TS, -4

A pretty solid Looney game. The Dubs played small much of the game, but Looney gave them some good size for a while, and helped stabilize the glass and the interior defense. The free throws are really starting to hurt, though.

Grade: B

Gary Payton II

26 minutes, 18 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block, 3 fouls, 8-for-10 shooting, 2-for-3 threes, 0-for-1 free throws, 86.2% TS, -1

Payton was the best player on the Warriors on Monday, in my eyes, and that earned him a second-half start over Post. When the Warriors were desperate for offense he created it on defense ... and then also on offense. He was an absolute menace playing perimeter D, and his offense surge continues. He deserved better than the way his teammates played.

Grade: A

Monday’s DNP-CDs: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Pat Spencer

Monday’s inactives: Taran Armstrong, Braxton Key, Brandin Podziemski, Jackson Rowe