The Golden State Warriors are officially rolling. With Thursday night’s 120-100 win over the Miami Heat, the Dubs have won six games in a row, and their 0-3 start is a distant memory.
Thursday was a game they were expected to win — Miami is off to a sluggish start, and played an overtime game the night before — and win they did, though they once came out of the gates slowly, trailing by 10 early and entering halftime with a tied score. But a win is a win is a win, and a 20-point win is a 20-point win is a 20-point win.
So let’s grade the players who got the job done. As always, grades are based on my expectations of each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.
Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Thursday’s games, league-average TS was 57.1%.
Will Richard
16 minutes, 10 points, 2 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 4-for-6 shooting, 2-for-4 threes, 83.3% TS, -5
Richard got another start, presumably partially due to Gui Santos’ absence, and partially due to wanting to get a strong defender on the court against Andrew Wiggins. Richard played awesomely against Wiggins, who shot just 1-for-6 on the day, and also when taking turns on Klay Thompson.
When the Warriors were struggling to start the game, Richard was also the team’s lone source of offense … not only was he the first player on the team to reach double digits, but he was the only Dub with double digits at the half.
It’s unfair that Richard ended up with a -5 plus/minus on a night where the Warriors won by 20. That’s really just the result of him being one of their best players when they were struggling, and then not getting much second-half playing time due to other players heating up. So it goes. They got the win, he played well, and I’m sure he’s quite happy with all of it.
Grade: A-
Post-game bonus: Worst plus/minus on the team.
Yaxel Lendeborg
30 minutes, 17 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 4 fouls, 6-for-14 shooting, 1-for-3 threes, 4-for-6 free throws, 51.1% TS, -1
Lendeborg — in just the ninth game of his career — has reached the point where you feel like he had a quiet game and then look at the box score and he’s sitting on a 17-8-6-3-1 line. Ridiculous!
His NBA crash course continued, as he opened up the game defending Bam Adebayo, and had plenty of possessions against Giannis Antetokounmpo as well. Both of those players had pretty decent numbers, but I was impressed with the job that Lendeborg did when lined up against them.
It wasn’t his most efficient shooting night, but we’re likely going to see that more and more as he’s given a larger and larger role in the offense. Both his efficiency and his plus/minus were hurt by the fact that Steve Kerr trusts Lendeborg to be The Man when Steph Curry and Draymond Green sit … and sometimes when they’re on the court, too. As a result, he doesn’t always have a ton of help, and there were plenty of shots in this game that he missed because he was the last-second bail-out option. Comes with the territory.
Ultimately, a very strong game for Lendeborg, and one where we really saw him start to further his chemistry with other players on the team, such as Charles Bassey and Brandon Williams.
Grade: B+
Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds.
Draymond Green
27 minutes, 2 points, 5 rebounds, 11 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 1-for-3 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 33.3% TS, +13
Green’s patience on offense continues to shine through this year. He’s played in seven games this season and only shot the ball 21 times, total. A large part of that is the presence of Lendeborg, who simply makes the offense work much better, and gives the team another 20-point scorer. But part of it is Draymond showing restraint on that end of the court. There will be a time and a place for him to take a lot of shots and score a lot of points, but it is very noticeable how much more fluid the offense is with him acting solely as a facilitator (both with and without the ball).
The season-high 11 assists for Green were a joy to watch, and it was the driving force for the 36 team assists the Dubs had, which was also a season high.
But above all else, this game was a reminder as to the value Green brings on the defensive end, not just through his actions on any given possession, but his abilities that allow Kerr flexibility when game-planning. On paper, Green being the starting center against an opposing frontcourt of Antetkounmpo and Adebayo is a bit silly, but his talent and versatility makes it work.
Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists.
Brandin Podziemski
32 minutes, 9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-for-8 shooting, 2-for-6 threes, 1-for-2 free throws, 50.7% TS, +5
It’s always a special day when Klay returns to the Bay Area. But when he does, it’s hard to ignore the storyline of his departure, even if it’s long been buried. A lot went into the Warriors legend deciding to leave the team, but much of it stemmed from being upset at Podziemski starting to take Thompson’s spot in the starting lineup, and the way the franchise handled that shift.
While it’s easy to understand and empathize with Klay, it’s also pretty apparent that the Warriors made the right move. Thompson is headed for the Hall of Fame, but these days Podziemski is certainly the better — and more complete — player.
That was on display Thursday night, even though it wasn’t Podz’s best game, by the stat sheet or by the eye test. He struggled to get separation against Miami’s length, but he played awesome defense and made things happen all over the court.
Grade: B-
Steph Curry
28 minutes, 29 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 foul, 9-for-19 shooting, 6-for-12 threes, 5-for-5 free throws, 68.4% TS, +17
Curry was something of a non-factor in the first half. He looked like he simply didn’t have it, and shot just 2-for-10 from the field. After the game, Kerr mentioned that one of the most special things about Curry is his ability to bounce back from a bad performance while it’s still happening, instead of needing to wait for the next game.
And my goodness was that exemplified in this contest. On the other side of the court was Antetokounmpo, a recent MVP, and Adebayo, who has the second-highest scoring game in NBA history to his name. Yet once the second half began, the contest emphatically belonged to Curry, who was far and away the best player on the court. He truly took over. And thanks to the addition of Lendeborg and the depth of this team, it seems like Curry will be able to do that more and more often this year, given that he doesn’t have to expend all his energy carrying the team on his shoulders all the time.
He’s still averaging more than a point per minute, and he’s under two turnovers per game. The end, I’m pleased to report, is not in sight.
Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points.
Al Horford
18 minutes, 8 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 fouls, 3-for-3 shooting, 2-for-2 threes, 133.3% TS, +21
It turns out that having three rest days — Horford didn’t play on Monday — is a superpower for Big Al. That probably shouldn’t be surprising, considering that this is his 20th NBA season. Against an incredibly athletic team, Horford more than held his own, with elite interior defense and a slick jumper that proved pivotal in the second-half rally.
He remains a savvy and trustworthy veteran on his worst day, and a two-way impact player on his best.
Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Best plus/minus on the team.
De’Anthony Melton
17 minutes, 5 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 1-for-5 shooting, 0-for-4 threes, 3-for-4 free throws, 37.0% TS, +9
Not the best offensive night for Melton, but it was a fantastic game for him on the other end of the court. His defense has been so strong this year and, just as importantly, his hands have been so active, which helps create healthy chaos. Critically, Melton has been one of — if not the — best player on the team at turning defense into offense this year. It feels like every time he gets a steal he pushes the ball in transition, and every time he gets a deflection, he leaks out for a teammate to find him. The Dubs had 28 points off of turnovers in this game (an 11-point advantage, despite only forcing one more turnover than they committed), and Melton was a big reason why, even if he only put one shot through the hoop.
Great defense, bad offense? We’ll call it a wash.
Grade: B
Brandon Williams
21 minutes, 10 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 4-for-7 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 63.5% TS, +7
I’m having so much fun watching Williams on the Warriors. He’s just such an enjoyable player to watch, and he plays in a way that’s been so foreign to the Dubs over the last decade-plus. Good things happen when Williams is on the court, and specifically when he has the ball in his hands. After so much movement of Curry dancing around the perimeter and cutting baseline to baseline, defenses seem completely confused when Williams gets on the court and starts exploding downhill like prime Frank Gore hitting a gap.
He’s been a little inconsistent this year in terms of actually finishing, but good things happen regardless, simply by nature of attacking. In this game, however? No problem finishing whatsoever, or dishing to open teammates. He even blocked a pair of shots! A tremendous game for a vital spark plug.
Grade: A-
Georges Niang
22 minutes, 13 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, 5-for-8 shooting, 2-for-5 threes, 1-for-2 free throws, 73.2% TS, +16
Niang is really starting to show up as advertised, and then some. We expected we’d get a heady veteran who made smart plays and drained threes, and that’s arriving in spades. What we didn’t expect was to get someone who was going to provide such fiery leadership. That was once again on display Thursday, when Niang did something that not many players are willing to do: go nose-to-nose with Bobby Portis Jr.
The forward had a few choice words for Portis while they shoved their foreheads against each other like bucks during mating season. You could see the trash-talking venom in Niang’s eyes, and both players were awarded technicals.
It’s fight and intensity that the Warriors need, especially with Jimmy Butler III sidelined. And it’s also a healthy complement to Green, as Niang is willing to scuffle with anyone — this was his third such instance of the season — but stops short of crossing the line. His teammates really seem to feed off of it.
Grade: A
Charles Bassey
14 minutes, 8 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 turnovers, 5 fouls, 3-for-4 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 82.0% TS, +7.
Fear not, Warriors fans. Kerr has heard your complaints, logged them, and taken action. After this game, Kerr said that Bassey is “earning more minutes for sure,” so you can expect him to get larger chunks of minutes going forward.
This wasn’t a perfect game from the energetic big. He got a little too careless, which led to three turnovers and five fouls in just 14 minutes. And he lost his perfect shooting night when he hoisted a victory cigar three that badly missed.
But just because he wasn’t perfect doesn’t mean he wasn’t damn good, and Bassey was exactly that: damn good. He’s not only figuring out how to finish more effectively, but building up great chemistry with his teammates. His defense is so much better than it was earlier in his career, as he’s genuinely turned a liability into an asset, and it comes with a bunch of rebounds, too.
Grade: A-
Gary Payton II
10 minutes, 9 points, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 3-for-3 shooting, 1-for-1 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 116.0% TS, +5
Payton seems healthier this year than he’s been in a long time, and it’s paying dividends. Kerr has also really figured out a nice role for GPII, who gets to come into the game for a few short bursts and wreak absolute havoc on defense, while cutting to the rim endlessly on offense. The improved depth of the bench has allowed Payton to have a smaller role, and he’s positively thriving in it.
Grade: A
Malevy Leons
1 minute, 0 points, +2
Despite it being a 20-point game, there wasn’t a lot of garbage time in this game, as the two-way contracts only got one minute and nine seconds of action.
Grade: Incomplete
Graham Ike
1 minute, 0 points, 1 rebound, +2
Only one minute of action, but Ike was still able to get in the stat sheet with a board.
Grade: Incomplete
LJ Cryer
1 minute, 0 points, +2
Cryer’s time is coming. At some point, injury and/or load management will open the door for him to get some consistent run.
Thursday’s inactives: Jimmy Butler III, Moses Moody, Kristaps Porziņģis, Gui Santos
