Warriors Weekly Recap: Winless Week for the Dubs

12/28- vs. Dallas Mavericks, L141-121

The Warriors looked like they might extend their winning streak to five games against an unlikely opponent. Golden State led Dallas by two going into the halftime break. The wheels came off for the Warriors midway through the third quarter though. Mavericks guard Luka Doncic collided with D’Angelo Russell chasing after a rebound. The impact left Russell on the ground in pain and a stretcher was brought onto the floor. Russell walked off the court under his own power but would not return. Dallas ended up outscoring Golden State 45-24 that quarter to essentially end the ballgame.

Russell was having a fantastic night prior to the injury. He poured in 35 points including a 9-14 effort from downtown as well as six assists. Damion Lee had another great night as well, scoring 18 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. 

Doncic was brilliant once again for Dallas this evening. He recorded his ninth triple-double of the season on 31 points, 15 assists, and 12 rebounds. Tim Hardaway Jr. had a hot shooting night as well, knocking down six triples en route to a 25-point performance.

12/31- @ San Antonio, L 117-113 OT

The final game of the decade for the Warriors was a thrilling one in San Antonio. This has been a series dominated by the Spurs historically, especially while in San Antonio. The shorthanded Warriors were close to pulling off the upset, but could not get the job done in overtime.

Winless Week: The teams went back and forth to close out regulation. Glenn Robinson III knocked down a 21-foot jumper to tie the game at 100 and force overtime. Robinson finished with 25 points on the night, tying a season-high for him. 

Dejounte Murray got loose in the overtime period, scoring seven of the 17 OT points for the Spurs including a 3-pointer. He finished with 15 points on the night. Unfortunately for the Warriors, they simply did not have the firepower to match. Alec Burks certainly tried, pouring in nine points in the overtime period and finishing with 28 total on the night. It was another solid performance from Damion Lee as well, scoring 20 points and once again making himself known on the glass with seven rebounds. 

01/02- @ Minnesota Timberwolves, L 99-84

The worst loss of this stretch for the Warriors was probably this game against the Timberwolves. Minnesota is not exactly a great team in their own right and they flat out dominated the Dubs from start to finish. The Timberwolves knocked down four three-pointers in the first quarter and led 34-19 afterward. Golden State would lock in more defensively from there on out, but they don’t have the offense to put themselves in that deep a hole.

Part of the problem was Shabazz Napier, the journeyman point guard who seems to have found a home in Minnesota. He was very efficient from the floor, shooting 7-9 and tying a team-high 20 points. Robert Covington, who has been involved with trade rumors surrounding the Warriors before, also had 20 points along with a four deep balls and ten rebounds to secure a double-double. 

With no D’Angelo Russell still, the Warriors struggled offensively. It was worse than usual from 3-pointerland, as the team shot just 3-20 from long range for an abysmal 15%. The Warriors are now the fifth-worst three-point shooting team in the NBA after finishing third best last season. Missing two of the best three-point shooters of all time will do that to a team though.

Damion Lee also went 0-4 from beyond the arc, snapping a streak of six games with at least one three made. 

01/04- vs. Detroit Pistons, L 111-104

The Warriors rounded out this bad week of ball appropriately with a home loss to the Pistons. Both teams came in with a three-game losing streak, and with no Reggie Jackson or Blake Griffin for Detroit, this was a very winnable game for Golden State. 

Still without Russell (in addition to Steph Curry and Klay Thompson), the Warriors need an engaged Draymond Green in any game they hope to win. This was not one of those games. Green was ejected late in the third quarter for mocking an official with the Warriors down just five. Golden State would actually cut the deficit to three by the end of the quarter but could never climb all the way back in the final frame. Green finished with just two points and was 0-2 from the floor. 

Alec Burks continues to be a nice offensive jolt for Golden State this season, albeit very streaky at times. He finished with 27 points and was 14-14 from the free-throw line. Omari Spellman also set a new season-high in scoring for himself, scoring 23 points and going a perfect 4-4 from downtown. 

For Detroit, Derrick Rose flashed signs of his former self as he poured in 22 points off the bench. Andre Drummond also took advantage of an undersized Warriors team, scoring 14 points and snatching 18 rebounds. 

Looking Ahead

The Warriors start the new week against the Sacramento Kings on Monday night on the road. They’ll also see two of the best teams in the league in the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers to follow before finishing the week in Memphis against the Grizzlies. 

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