Kerr takes backseat in Warriors blowout of Suns
OAKLAND, Calif. — Stephen Curry scored 22 points, and Golden State coach Steve Kerr tried to break up the monotony of a long season by turning the timeout huddles over to his players in the Warriors’ 129-83 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Monday night.
With the defending champion Warriors dragging a bit leading into the All-Star break this weekend, Kerr apparently searched for a new way to capture his players’ interests by handing over the whiteboard during timeouts to a rotating cast of players, with injured Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala getting most of the chances.
Kerr spent the breaks outside the huddle while his players drew out plays and discussed strategy. The move worked just fine against the struggling Suns, who became the first team with 40 losses this season.
Omri Casspi added 19 points, Kevin Durant had 17 and Klay Thompson and Nick Young each scored 16 as Golden State won its 12th straight in the series, its longest active streak against any team.
Elfrid Payton scored 29 points in his second game since being acquired at the trade deadline from Orlando, but Phoenix still lost its sixth straight and 11th in the past 12 games.
Payton scored 16 points in the first quarter before Curry got on the scoreboard, but he got little help. Payton made his first seven shots, but his teammates started 1-for-15 and the Warriors managed to take a 25-24 lead by the end of the first after being outscored by 32 points in the first quarter of the previous three games.
Curry scored 10 points in the second quarter as Golden State built a 17-point lead at the half and coasted the rest of the way.
TIP-INS
Suns: G Devin Booker (hip pointer) missed his fourth straight game, and G Tyler Ulis (back) sat for the second straight game . ... Phoenix has lost 12 straight in Oakland, last winning here on Feb. 7, 2011.
Warriors: Green sat with a sprained left index finger but is expected back Wednesday. Casspi started in his place . ... G Patrick McCaw, who has been spending time in the G league between NBA games trying to get his confidence back, scored nine points in the second quarter after having just eight in the previous 10 games. He then left the game with a sprained right wrist.