‘Gotta tip your hat’ to Curry, Warriors
Stephen Curry crossed halfcourt, took one dribble and then pulled up. Distance didn’t matter.
Curry buried bomb after bomb, each more ridiculous than the last in the Warriors’ 136-97 beatdown of the Thunder on Saturday night in San Francisco.
Curry cracked a smile during a third-quarter timeout, fully realizing the cheat code that he is.
“Some of those are just tough,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “You’ve gotta tip your hat.”
The NBA’s leading scorer added 49 more points to his total on Saturday. Curry scored 24 points in the first quarter. The Thunder scored 25. Curry outscored the Thunder 22-19 in the third quarter.
So in the first and third quarters it was Curry 46, Thunder 44.
Curry didn’t even play in the fourth quarter. He finished 14-of-26 from the floor and 11-of-21 from 3-point range.
“Even if he starts the game 0-for-5, the pressure that he puts on you just with how he moves and what you know he’s capable of, that’s the issue,” Daigneault said. “That’s what opens everything up for them.” Here are four other takeaways:
Long-range efficiency
It wasn’t just Curry.
The Warriors made 27-of-54 3-pointers (50%) on Saturday to set a franchise record for most 3-pointers in a game. They fell just short of the NBA record (29).
“They’re a great team, especially with Steph on the floor,” Thunder wing Svi Mykhailiuk said. “What he does is unbelievable. You seen it today. He’s just one of the greatest shooters of all time.”
The Thunder was 9-of-37 (24%) from 3-point range.
Lu Dort starts
Lu Dort (patellar tendinitis) was a game-time decision just as he was Thursday night. And for the second game in a row, Dort suited up and started.
Dort scored 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting. He was 3-of-7 from 3-point range.
Mykhailiuk led the Thunder with 17 points.
Thunder clap
In the Thursday night game against the Warriors, the broadcast showed
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault and forward Darius Bazley having a heated exchange in the huddle.
Bazley, whose back is turned in the shot, claps in Daigneault’s face as Daigneault yells at him.
Daigneault was asked Saturday about the exchange.
“I called a timeout. I think it was like a 12-point game," Daigneault said. "It had ballooned to 17. And it was on some stuff that we can control. It was on a couple effort plays, not just specific to him. I just wanted to make sure we got to the half in a manageable spot.
“I wanted to give the team a little bit of a jolt, and he responded to it, which I really have no problem with. I felt no disrespect there and I didn’t think I was disrespectful on my end. Heat of the battle type thing.
“We were fine literally seconds later. And Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) was laughing at us the entire time. That’s why it’s a little funny. It was obviously a little hot, but it wasn’t an escalated situation that’s a big deal.”
NBA Draft lottery odds
The Thunder (21-47) remained in fourth position for best lottery odds.
OKC has a 48% chance at a top-four pick and a 12.5% chance at the No. 1 pick.
There’s also a 48% chance that Houston’s pick falls to OKC at No. 5.