THUNDER UP
The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Golden State Warriors, 120-92
Thunder guard Terrance Ferguson dropped to the ground immediately after the blow.
Play had stopped for the foul Ferguson had committed on Steph Curry — a rarity for Ferguson on Sunday — but the officials were headed to the side line to review the unfortunately placed
below-the-belt hit that had left Ferguson curled up on the floor in pain for several minutes.
Curry walked to the scorers' table to make his case: “What did I do? I'm just running, right?”
The officials disagreed and handed down a technical. It was one in a long string of frustrating moments for Curry with Ferguson guarding him. On the way to a 120-92 win over the Warriors
on Sunday at Chesapeake Energy Arena, the Thunder held Curry to 7- of -18 shooting.
“I think a lot of people watch Curry when the ball's in his hands,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said ,“but really the time to watch him is when the ball's not in his hands. Because he's are lentless move rand cutter and they do a great job trying
to spring him and free him off screens .… And I think Terrance had really good energy today, not fouling but really pursuing and chasing and just trying to get there when he caught the ball.”
Golden State (0-2) needed Curry to contribute the brunt of its scoring. Kevin Durant left for the Nets in free agency. Klay Thompson was out with a torn ACL. The Warriors had acquired D'Angelo Russell in the offseason, but he scored just six points Sunday before being ejected in the third quarter for back-to-back technical fouls.
Curry paced the Warriors with 23 points, but he needed to make all seven of his free throws to do so.
The Thunder (1-2) adjusted its defensive game plan for sharp-shooting Curry. This season, OKC has experimented with playing its bigs near the basket (“drop coverage ”) while defending pick- and-rolls. When played effectively, that approach limits corner 3-pointers and forces opposing teams to shoot mid-range shots.
Even in the Thunder's first two losses, its defense was a bright spot. It held both Utah and Washington to 100 points or fewer.
But with Curry on the floor, the Thunder went back to playing the center — usually Steven Adams when Curry was on the floor — up near the perimeter in pick-and-roll.
“Honestly, we had to ,” Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said ,“because he's shooting so well, if we were in the drop he'd light us up.”
With Ferguson sticking to Curry like glue and slipping over screens, Curry took just five shots in the first quarter. He made three of them, but as the game wore on, Curry became less efficient.
When Ferguson—or Gilgeous-Alexander, when he took his turn guarding Curry — did lose him, Adams was there to force a pass or disrupt a shot attempt.
Halfway through the third quarter, Ferguson bit on a pump-fake and went flying past Curry on the right wing. Curry glanced at the rim, but Adams' 7-foot frame loomed over him. By the time Curry had reset to get a shot off, Ferguson leaped back in front of Curry to contest. Curry's 3-pont shot bounced off the rim.
By the end of the third quarter, the Thunder led 105-68, and the Warriors didn't see any point in putting Curry back in the game. So, Ferguson too got a break in the fourth quarter.
Ferguson, who last season was no stranger to foul trouble, finished the night with just two fouls.
“Terrance is a smart guy,”
Donovan said, “and I think he wanted to stay on the floor, and I think he knew he had to get his hands out of some tough situations, and he did a great job.”