Reactions: Warriors 90, Spurs 111

Golden State Warriors

111

San Antonio Spurs

	Harrison Barnes, SF 36 MIN \| 3-12 FG \| 4-4 FT \| 2 REB \| 0 AST \| 1 STL \| 0 BLK \| 2 TO \| 11 PTS \| -13Barnes was given every opportunity to contribute against the Spurs, but Kawhi Leonard, the Spurs defense and Barnes’ willingness to clank open shots had other ideas. He had 11 points, but four of those were from the free throw line. He had zero assists. He had two rebounds in 36 minutes. The Warriors could’ve kept this competitive had Barnes hit some of his open shots, specifically from distance, but it wasn’t in the cards. In fact, it hasn’t been in the cards this entire season. When do we stop blaming the position change, confidence or youth? We have yet to see Barnes at the 4 much at all this season, which is where he thrived last season. Maybe he’s limited to just that type of offense, but the current makeup of this team doesn’t allow for that. The Warriors would be wise to limit Barnes’ minutes as the season dwindles.
	Draymond Green, SF 32 MIN \| 4-10 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 8 REB \| 4 AST \| 0 STL \| 2 BLK \| 1 TO \| 8 PTS \| -19Green started off the game with a nice drive and finish to put the Warriors on the board, but there wasn’t much more to be had from him on Wednesday night. He was once again used to guard a multitude of positions, but the problem there is that you’re playing the Spurs. You can’t lock in on one player and think they will be limited. They are truly a team, and thrive off ball movement, cuts, backdoors and making the defense look foolish. The Warriors were without their stalwart inside, which allowed the Spurs to score 52 points in the paint on the night. Green did his best, but couldn’t find any rhythm on the offensive end and fell victim to the incredible efficiency of San Antonio.
	Jermaine O’Neal, C 4 MIN \| 0-0 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 0 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 1 TO \| 0 PTS \| -2I’m not even sure what happened here. O’Neal was slated to start, did, then was never seen from again after checking out. There was no injuries to report following the game.
	Stephen Curry, PG 31 MIN \| 5-15 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 0 REB \| 10 AST \| 1 STL \| 0 BLK \| 4 TO \| 11 PTS \| -19After his ridiculous heroics the previous night, a letdown game was almost expected. His four turnovers were ugly, and his 11 points was his third lowest total of the season. He did have 10 assists, but that wasn’t nearly enough to keep the Warriors in the ball game. Kawhi Leonard jumped passing lanes, the Spurs helped when they needed to made the right people shoot the basketball. In other words, they made anyone but Curry beat them, which the Warriors failed to capitalize on. The Warriors might’ve had a shot to steal this one had Lee been present and productive down low, or Bogut initiate from the top of the key and set tough screens. The Spurs just continue to outclass the Warriors. San Antonio had always been the shorthanded squad, but the shorthanded Golden State squad couldn’t flip the script. It wasn’t as close as the score indicated.
	Klay Thompson, SG 33 MIN \| 5-8 FG \| 2-2 FT \| 2 REB \| 2 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 0 TO \| 15 PTS \| -25Thompson was the more productive Splash Brother in terms of points, but his struggles against the Spurs continue. Thompson was tasked with guarding Tony Parker the majority of the night, and that’s one of the toughest tasks in all of basketball. When he wasn’t chasing Parker down, fouling him or watching Parker make multiple Warriors defenders foolish, Thompson was hitting on the offensive end. In the case on Wednesday night, there just wasn’t enough shots for him for whatever reason. Mo Speights played three less minutes and shot it twice as many times. That can’t happen, but fatigue definitely became an issue. Expect a better night when the defenseless Kings come into town on Friday night.

Looking ahead: The Warriors round out their week by welcoming in the Sacramento Kings on Friday and the Utah Jazz on Sunday. The team hopes to welcome back David Lee and Andre Iguodala on Friday.

Your Big Three shot chart of the night:

Your second-unit update of the night:

Jordan Crawford was the unsung hero of the Warriors’ win against the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday, and he wasn’t shy about his shots on Wednesday night either. In his last two games, Crawford has shot 46% from the field for 35 points and six rebounds in 50 combined minutes. The beauty about Crawford is his ability to get shots up and if he’s making them, to keep you in games. If he isn’t hitting, Jackson has established a short enough leash to wear he can’t lose games for you. It’s a near perfect situation for Steezus, and one he’s thriving in as of late. Every team needs one good chucker off the bench.

Mo Speights has also been playing well, which began with Mark Jackson’s decision to start him against the Memphis Grizzlies last Friday night. The move was shocking, as there were rumblings that Jermaine O’Neal or Draymond Green would get the nod against the formidable Grizzlies frontcourt. Speights was extremely efficient in the game, scoring 15 points on 7/9 shooting and grabbing eight rebounds in just over 26 minutes. I don’t want him part of the main playoff rotation, but it’s encouraging to see Mo contribute like he has given his contract and his position in the froncourt. With Lee and Bogut ailing, the Warriors will continue to need Speights to contribute.

Steve Blake was (-9) in 23 minutes for 0 points and three assists. He’s struggled to find his shot to say the least, failing to score in his last three games (58 minutes). There’s no doubt Blake has been useful for this club, but he hasn’t found his way offensively yet, and while that isn’t his role, having that threat re-established will do wonders for the second-unit. Hilton Armstrong received minutes, scored points and is alive.

Your former Warrior lowlight of the night:

I liked this game better:

What was Paul George thinking?

Tweets of the night:

@JRAM_91 Pop TO after 4 pt run. Jax TO after 12 pt run. Smh. — Rex Wui (@itcrashed) April 3, 2014

Has anyone in GSW’s management / quant dept every told MJax that there is no rule that says you have to play all 5 subs to start 2q and 4qs? — Haralabos Voulgaris (@haralabob) April 3, 2014

Warriors are down 20, they’re playing their scrubs against the Spurs scrubs…and Harrison Barnes looks like the 8th best player on the court. — Kevin Draper (@kevinmdraper) April 3, 2014

Follow @JRAM_91

	Harrison Barnes, SF 36 MIN \| 3-12 FG \| 4-4 FT \| 2 REB \| 0 AST \| 1 STL \| 0 BLK \| 2 TO \| 11 PTS \| -13Barnes was given every opportunity to contribute against the Spurs, but Kawhi Leonard, the Spurs defense and Barnes’ willingness to clank open shots had other ideas. He had 11 points, but four of those were from the free throw line. He had zero assists. He had two rebounds in 36 minutes. The Warriors could’ve kept this competitive had Barnes hit some of his open shots, specifically from distance, but it wasn’t in the cards. In fact, it hasn’t been in the cards this entire season. When do we stop blaming the position change, confidence or youth? We have yet to see Barnes at the 4 much at all this season, which is where he thrived last season. Maybe he’s limited to just that type of offense, but the current makeup of this team doesn’t allow for that. The Warriors would be wise to limit Barnes’ minutes as the season dwindles.
	Draymond Green, SF 32 MIN \| 4-10 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 8 REB \| 4 AST \| 0 STL \| 2 BLK \| 1 TO \| 8 PTS \| -19Green started off the game with a nice drive and finish to put the Warriors on the board, but there wasn’t much more to be had from him on Wednesday night. He was once again used to guard a multitude of positions, but the problem there is that you’re playing the Spurs. You can’t lock in on one player and think they will be limited. They are truly a team, and thrive off ball movement, cuts, backdoors and making the defense look foolish. The Warriors were without their stalwart inside, which allowed the Spurs to score 52 points in the paint on the night. Green did his best, but couldn’t find any rhythm on the offensive end and fell victim to the incredible efficiency of San Antonio.
	Jermaine O’Neal, C 4 MIN \| 0-0 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 0 REB \| 0 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 1 TO \| 0 PTS \| -2I’m not even sure what happened here. O’Neal was slated to start, did, then was never seen from again after checking out. There was no injuries to report following the game.
	Stephen Curry, PG 31 MIN \| 5-15 FG \| 0-0 FT \| 0 REB \| 10 AST \| 1 STL \| 0 BLK \| 4 TO \| 11 PTS \| -19After his ridiculous heroics the previous night, a letdown game was almost expected. His four turnovers were ugly, and his 11 points was his third lowest total of the season. He did have 10 assists, but that wasn’t nearly enough to keep the Warriors in the ball game. Kawhi Leonard jumped passing lanes, the Spurs helped when they needed to made the right people shoot the basketball. In other words, they made anyone but Curry beat them, which the Warriors failed to capitalize on. The Warriors might’ve had a shot to steal this one had Lee been present and productive down low, or Bogut initiate from the top of the key and set tough screens. The Spurs just continue to outclass the Warriors. San Antonio had always been the shorthanded squad, but the shorthanded Golden State squad couldn’t flip the script. It wasn’t as close as the score indicated.
	Klay Thompson, SG 33 MIN \| 5-8 FG \| 2-2 FT \| 2 REB \| 2 AST \| 0 STL \| 0 BLK \| 0 TO \| 15 PTS \| -25Thompson was the more productive Splash Brother in terms of points, but his struggles against the Spurs continue. Thompson was tasked with guarding Tony Parker the majority of the night, and that’s one of the toughest tasks in all of basketball. When he wasn’t chasing Parker down, fouling him or watching Parker make multiple Warriors defenders foolish, Thompson was hitting on the offensive end. In the case on Wednesday night, there just wasn’t enough shots for him for whatever reason. Mo Speights played three less minutes and shot it twice as many times. That can’t happen, but fatigue definitely became an issue. Expect a better night when the defenseless Kings come into town on Friday night.