Warriors enjoy feeling of rare blowout win
OAKLAND >> As the Splash Brothers walked off the court, Klay Thompson had a question for Stephen Curry.
“When’s the last time we blew somebody out, 2016?” Thompson asked after a 122-95 blowout of the New York Knicks on Tuesday night.
It was the seventh time this season the Warriors had won by 20 points or more, and it had been little more than a week since they beat Phoenix by 23, but Thompson’s point was made. It has been a season of uneven performances, certainly nothing like 2015-16 when they rolled teams routinely on their way to 73 wins.
So the Knicks (10-30), losers of nine of 10 and on the sixth game of a trip, were the perfect foil for the Warriors (27-14).
“Winning big, big margins — never had done it as much as we should this season,” Thompson said. “At
the halfway point, we’re in a very good position. We’re on pace for 54 wins. I think that will increase.”
Thompson led the way with 43 points on 18 of 29 shooting, including 7 of 16 from the arc. It was his second 40-point game of the season, the other coming Nov. 29 against Chicago when he set the NBA record for 3-pointers with 14.
Curry had an off night, missing 14 of 19 shots to finish with 14 points. Draymond Green took only five shots and made one. But Thompson got plenty of support from Kevin Durant who had 24 points, six assists and six rebounds. KLAY STAYED HOT >> Thompson’s season has been marked by uncharacteristic shooting problems, but in the past five games he’s shooting 55.1 percent, including 51.3 percent from 3-point range.
“It’s good to see Klay knocking down shots, but nobody is worried about him,” said Durant. “He’s Klay Thompson. He can get it going at any time. It’s not like we’re looking at his hand and saying, ‘Welcome back, we miss you.’ ”
The comment drew laughs because Thompson, after making a 3 on a particularly hot shooting night Nov. 29 against Portland, walked toward the bench, looking at his right hand and saying, “I missed you.”
“I love this new narrative that he’s back,” Curry said, laughing. “That’s what Klay does. He’s confident in him- self and that never wavers. It’s just funny with the ups and downs and the spotlight on him — it’s a good thing it’s Klay Thompson having to deal with that. He’s the best at it.”
A career shooter of 45.7 percent overall and 41.7 percent from long range, Thompson is shooting .45,1 and 35.6 this season. Last season, he shot 48.8 and 44.0, both career highs. And yet … “Every day I feel like I’m due for one of these kind of games, believe it or not,” Thompson said. “I know how long the season is. I’ve been here for eight years now. I know there’s going to be some ups and downs.”
Thompson said he felt like he “should’ve had 10 3s. But you never let missed shots affect you. Just keep being aggressive. Unfortunately, I didn’t have very many assists. But it happens.” YEAH, ABOUT THOSE ASSISTS >> Thompson had none, zero. That doesn’t exactly jibe with the Warriors’ belief in ball movement.
But just as Durant picked up the scoring slack left by Curry and Green, they picked up the assist slack. Curry had 14. Green had 10.
As a team, the Warriors had 36 assists and 46 points in the paint.
THE WARRIORS COULD AFFORD TO REST THEIR ALLSTARS IN THE FOURTH QUARTER >> For the first time in a little less than a month, the Warriors did not have to weigh at what point should Curry rest and play in the fourth quarter with his new staggered role. With the Warriors’ easy win, Kerr sat Durant the entire fourth quarter and his three other All-Stars for the final 5:33.
Kerr maintained that’s “not really something I’m thinking about,” adding that he’s “more interested in the quality of our play.” Durant added, “we’re all young. We can handle it.”
Still, Thompson (33 minutes), Green (33), Curry (31) and Durant (30) played substantially fewer minutes in the Warriors’ recently close games. Consider the minutes for Curry (40), Durant (42), Thompson (43) and Green (37) in the Warriors’ overtime loss to Houston. Or the minutes for Curry (38, including entire fourth quarter) and Durant (39) in the Warriors’ win over Sacramento.
The Warriors normally play their All-Stars between 32-36 minutes per night to ensure they stay fresh through the regular season. And what better time to return those ranges with an optional day on Wednesday, a practice on Thursday and presumably another easy home game against the Chicago Bulls on Friday. The Warriors then have a two-game, three-day trip to Dallas (Sunday) and Denver (Tuesday).
“It helps,” Curry said. “Those are type of nights where you keep the minutes down, especially with this week and the way games are spaced out and not laying into a Friday and starting on another road trip. Hopefully we can take advantage of that and be fresh on Friday and take care of business.” TODAY’S CHUCKLE >> Kerr couldn’t explain why it “just flashed into my head.” It was an exchange that occurred during a TNT broadcast of a Knicks game he was working with Marv Albert and Charles Barkley.
As Kerr recalls, “Marv said, ‘Charles, the Knicks seemed to really have a strong team, but occasionally a certain lethargy sets in. And Charles goes, ‘Marv, I don’t know what ‘lethargy’ means. But if it means they suck, I agree with you.’ ”