Dominance on full display with blistering 3rd period
DENVER — As the Warriors’ head coach, Steve Kerr borrows phrases and tactics from some of the great leaders in NBA history.
Earlier this season, as Golden State endured unexpected growing pains, Kerr repeatedly stressed the importance to his players of having “appropriate fear” of their opponent. It was verbiage taken directly from the lexicon of the Spurs’ Gregg Popovich, who coached Kerr for four seasons (1998-2001, 2002-03).
It required a road trip against three of the Western Conference’s better teams — the Clippers, Spurs and Nuggets — for the Warriors to start playing up to their potential. As Saturday night’s 127-105 rout of Denver at Pepsi Center illustrated, Golden State is at its best when faced with a challenge.
“Sometimes you need to get on the road to feel more threatened,” Kerr said.
The Warriors built a 13-
point, second-quarter lead only to lose it, then build it to five by halftime. They then shot 16for-23 from the field in the third — including 6-for-11 from three-point range — to tie the NBA-high for points in a quarter this season at 43. A 103-76 Golden State cushion entering the fourth was too much for a Denver team on the rough end of a back-to-back set.
As the Warriors prepare to fly back to the Bay Area for a four-game homestand, they appear over their much-discussed championship hangover.
Since stumbling to a 1-2 start, Golden State is 6-1. The Warriors swept their three-game trip, winning by a combined 70 points. After committing at least 16 turnovers in each of its first seven games, Golden State hasn’t tallied more than 14 in any of its past three. The Warriors held the Nuggets to 9for-24 shooting Saturday in that game-changing third quarter.
“We didn’t play well a few games early on,” said Kevin Durant, whose 25 points paced his team on a night five Warriors scored at least 11. “The last three games have been solid for us, so we’re going to try to build on that, take it home and take care of home.”
As the biggest championship favorites in NBA history, the Warriors tend to bring out the best in their opponents. More than any team, however, Golden State’s biggest foe this season is its own self-assuredness. Before tip-off Saturday, Denver head coach Mike Malone told his players that, for all the Warriors’ strengths, “they’ll let you get back in the game.”
It was no shocker then that, after trailing 36-23 at the end of the first quarter, the Nuggets unleashed a 15-0 run to take their first lead. Fresh off Friday night’s 95-94 win over Miami, Denver got a boost from its bench trio of Kenneth Faried, Emmanuel Mudiay and Will Barton.
Midway through the second quarter, Faried strode into the key, grabbed a lob from Mudiay and hammered home the alleyoop over Omri Casspi while drawing contact. After Faried hit the ensuing free throw, the Nuggets had used a 24-5 rally to seize a 47-41 lead.
The problem for Denver? The Warriors are uniquely equipped to turn a single-digit deficit into a double-digit lead in a matter of minutes.
“I think everybody came out with great energy out of the half,” Durant said. “We found something working in the pickand-roll, and we just tried to exploit that.”
On Golden State’s first possession of the third quarter, Draymond Green (15 points, seven rebounds, eight assists) netted a three-pointer from the top of the arc, turned and pumped his right fist as he unleashed a roar. It was only moments later that Zaza Pachulia — yes, Zaza Pachulia — broke free for a fast-break layup.
Midway through the third, Stephen Curry (22 points, 11 assists) nabbed a steal and, while drawing a foul from Mudiay, nailed a corner threepointer before missing the free throw. Redemption came several minutes later when Curry hit a step-back 26-footer, crumpled to the court while getting fouled and netted the ensuing foul shot.