NETS 125, WARRIORS 99
Blowout loss in Golden State’s opener stirs worry that team is further from contention than coaches, players thought.
The Warriors, like all NBA teams do, entered opening night Tuesday with plenty of optimism. Head coach Steve Kerr preached the importance of posting a top10 defense and leading the league in pace, even though such goals might have seemed unrealistic for a roster riddled with question marks.
In its 12599 loss to Kevin Durant and the Nets at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Golden State was forced to grapple with a sobering truth: No amount of positivity will change the fact that the Warriors are far from contention. Less than 11⁄ years after Durant
2 left a dynastic franchise in the Bay Area to partner with close friend Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn, Golden State is difficult to recognize compared with the dazzling, selfless group that Durant helped lead to two NBA titles.
With Klay Thompson ( torn right Achilles tendon) out for the season and Draymond Green ( muscle strain in right foot) sidelined for the night, the
Warriors looked overmatched in all facets as they let an 18point halftime deficit balloon to a 38point hole midway through the fourth quarter. At the start of that fourth, with a win well out of reach, Stephen Curry took a seat on the bench and threw a towel over his head.
His blank expression as he watched the rest of the shellacking was all one needed to understand what had unfolded. In a nationally televised matchup trumpeted as Durant’s first regularseason game back from the torn Achilles tendon he suffered in Game 5 of the 2019 Finals with the Warriors, the Nets showcased the depth, offensive firepower and stingy defense synonymous with title contenders.
Their dominance only underscored Golden State’s deficiencies. As the Nets zipped the ball around the court, befuddled Warriors defenders and capitalized on open looks, Golden State struggled to find any semblance of rhythm on either end. Even Curry, whose brilliance seemed one of the few guarantees for the Warriors this season, failed to channel his usual dynamism as he shot 7for21 from the field ( 2for10 from 3point range).
His top sidekick with Thompson out, Andrew Wiggins, labored on both sides of the court as he posted a plusminus of minus28 in 31 minutes. Kelly Oubre Jr., the wing brought in to help replace Thompson, wasn’t much better, finishing 3for14 from the field and missing all six of his 3point tries.
“I’m disappointed with the outcome and the effort, but it doesn’t change the way I feel about this team,” Kerr said. “They’re a great group. I really
“I think we got a little frustrated when our shot stopped falling in the first quarter.” Stephen Curry, Warriors guard
like where we’re going to be a couple of months from now, but right now, we’re nowhere close to being a good team.”
After weeks talking about his belief that the Warriors could go from the league’s fifthworst defense to a top10 one, Kerr was forced to watch his team blow rotation after rotation. The Nets faced minimal resistance as they rode Irving ( 26 points on 16 shots), Durant ( 20 points) and Caris LeVert ( 20 points). On the night, Brooklyn shot 45.7% from the field and 42.9% from 3point range.
Just as troubling for the Warriors was their inability to use their speed to their advantage. Golden State couldn’t get the necessary stops to get in transition, looking lost at times as the Nets outscored it 2812 on fast breaks.
Along the way, the Nets showed Golden State how legitimate depth can complement an AllStarladen starting unit. A Brooklyn bench stocked with players who’d be starters on other teams outscored the Warriors’ bench 5435.
“We know how good Brooklyn is across the board, but I think we got a little frustrated when our shot stopped falling in the first quarter,” Curry said. “We got good looks, and we missed a bunch of them. It kind of deflated us a little bit. That, in turn, took our edge off on the defensive end.”
Perhaps the biggest reason for optimism Tuesday was the performance of center James Wiseman, who, in his first NBA game and first outing at any level in 13 months, flashed the speed and athleticism that compelled the Warriors to take him with the second overall pick in last month’s draft. In 24 minutes, he posted 19 points on 7for13 shooting, six rebounds and two steals.
The Warriors hope that the addition of Green, who could return Christmas Day in Milwaukee, will unlock more of Wiseman’s potential. But Wiseman is only one player, and the Warriors need to iron out a slew of kinks to become a factor in the West and exorcise the memory of last season’s leagueworst record.
Kerr, for his part, will continue to preach optimism. The Warriors face Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks in a matchup Friday.
“We’ve got a lot of work ahead,” Kerr said, “but I’m very, very positive about this group.”