Durant leads the way as Warriors blast Trail Blazers.
Depth kicks in: Golden State finds ways to win with Curry, Green, Pachulia sidelined New look: Bell, Casspi both score 11 points as starters; Durant nets 28, Thompson 24
OAKLAND » As the Warriors ran and up down the court splashing baskets with almost every shot they took, the plays provided visual evidence on why the Warriors spent the past two offseasons constructing their roster this way.
They successfully pursued Kevin Durant in the 2016 offseason, aware there is no such a thing as too many stars in Golden State’s team-oriented system. The Warriors then spent their 2017 offseason addressing positional needs with secondary scoring (Nick Young, Omri Casspi) and promising young talent (Jordan Bell).
So on another night that Stephen Curry sat out to heal his sprained right ankle, the Warriors secured a 111-104 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday at Oracle Arena by mixing all of those elements together.
“The key is having a lot of talent around them and a lot of continuity that exists on the team,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s hard to integrate six or seven new players. If it’s three or four on a team that already has the continuity we have, it’s much easier. The older guys lead them and help them along. They’ve all been very good and are fun to have on the team. They’re all contributing.”
Durant posted 28 points while shooting 11 of 19 from the field, 2 of 3 from 3-point range and 4 of 4 from the free-throw line and added nine rebounds and five assists. While Durant offered a blend of taking open shots when Portland sagged on pick-and-rolls, he tried to set up his teammates for easy baskets. That came in handy when the Warriors (22-6) secured an 11th consecutive win over Portland and seventh overall, as Portland’s backcourt in Damian Lillard (39 points) and CJ McCollum (21 points) reduced a 24-point deficit to single digits in the final minutes.
“My mindset was to keep being me, keep playing hard and keep shooting good shots,” Durant said. “Stay calm out there and we’ll start to pull away there at the end.”
The Warriors did so because of their depth, particularly from their newcomers.
With Warriors center Zaza Pachulia (left shoulder) and forward Draymond Green (right shoulder) sitting out for the second time in three games with soreness, Bell (11 points, four rebounds) and Casspi (11 points, nine rebounds) managed just fine in the starting lineup. Young become suddenly proficient (12 points) even in limited playing time off the bench before being diagnosed with a concussion that kept him out of the fourth quarter. Young will begin the NBA concussion protocol Tuesday during the team’s off day.
“Unfortunately he got hurt. He was about to go for at least 20 tonight with maybe four or five 3’s,” Warriors guard Klay Thompson said about Young.
It seems easy to forget about Thompson, but he remained dependable as usual. He posted 24 points on 9-of-21 shooting in marking his 10th consecutive double-digit performance. Thompson also made two 3-pointers on consecutive possessions
to give the Warriors a 109-100 cushion with 2:56 remaining.
“When you see Klay Thompson wide open in the corner, you don’t have to worry about looking at the shot,” Durant said. “It feels like it’s going in every time.”
In other words, the Warriors have done just fine without Curry with a 4-1 record since he became sidelined for the last week. Kerr said beforehand that Curry is “coming along well” after getting out of a walking boot and completing rope and bike exercises Monday. Kerr also expected Green and Pachulia to return soon, perhaps as early as Thursday’s game against
Dallas.
For now, though, the other Warriors seem comfortable in their new roles. While Durant joked Casspi should have gotten a double-double after accidentally stealing a rebound from him, Durant labeled Bell’s chase-down block on Lillard in the third quarter as “spectacular.” With the block setting up an open jumper for Durant, he observed “that play right there got us going.”
“These nights are powerful for a team where guys are able to get out there who aren’t usually in the lineup,” Kerr said. “It makes them feel good. It makes us feel good. It just strengthens the team.”