The Golden State Warriors got back in the loss column on Tuesday, losing 113-109 to the New Orleans Pelicans. It was an odd game, and it wasn’t clear whether the Warriors should be favored or not. They were facing a very bad Pelicans team, but New Orleans was fairly healthy, and even welcomed Dejounte Murray back after more than a year on the sidelines. Golden State, meanwhile, was playing without Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler III, Kristaps Porziņģis, and Al Horford.
It was a very ugly first half, with
the Warriors unable to buy a bucket. It looked for a while like they would get blown out, but they came roaring back in the second half, and took the lead. Then they lost their rhythm down the stretch, and the Pelicans took control in the final moments.
Let’s grade the shorthanded squad that came up just short against old friend Jordan Poole. As always, grades are based on my expectations for 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 Tuesday’s games, league average TS was 57.9%.
Moses Moody
34 minutes, 24 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 turnover, 5 fouls, 7-for-13 shooting, 4-for-10 threes, 6-for-8 free throws, 72.6% TS, +13
Moody stepped up in a huge way this game, just as he did on Sunday. After a few games looking a little slow and sluggish, he’s starting to take advantage of the opportunity in front of him. His shot was nice in this one, and his defense was solid, even though he almost fouled out. But what I really loved was the way he used the threat of his jump shot to attack … he took three shots inside the arc and drew eight free throws, and that was fantastic to see.
Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Best plus/minus on the team.
Gui Santos
39 minutes, 15 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 6 turnovers, 5 fouls, 6-for-13 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 54.0% TS, -7
It’s been a while since a Warrior played 39 minutes in a game, but if anyone can do it, it’s the endless ball of energy that is Santos. That energy mostly did good things. The 12 rebounds speak for themselves, and Santos was frequently leaping around the court, keeping a possession alive or saving a ball from going out of bounds. The five stocks certainly speaks to his activity level.
The energy sometimes did bad things, though. Six turnovers is way too many, as is five fouls, though some grace is afforded given how shorthanded the team was. Overall, it was a chaotic game from Gui, but he did more good than harm, especially considering the circumstances of the roster.
Grade: B+
Draymond Green
32 minutes, 11 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 blocks, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 5-for-11 shooting, 1-for-3 threes, 50.0% TS, +8
A pretty solid Dray game which, honestly, we hadn’t really seen in a while. He played really strong defense on Zion Williamson, who scored 26 points but needed 21 shots and five free throws to get there, while having his playmaking shut down. Some really nice passes from Dray, as well.
Grade: B+
Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists.
De’Anthony Melton
28 minutes, 28 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 4 fouls, 8-for-21 shooting, 3-for-10 threes, 9-for-11 free throws, 54.2% TS, +9
There were points in this game where Melton was the only Warrior capable of getting a bucket. When no one else could score early, he was dropping it shots. He continued to be able to get looks all through the game, though his efficiency fell off rather dramatically. He was the team’s top scorer, but didn’t score very efficiently, and turned the ball over as often as he passed out an assist (though much of that was due to his teammates missing shots).
He had the highlight of the game on a massive dunk, and was a reminder as to the value of being able to get a bucket, even when the efficiency isn’t great. Especially with Curry out.
Grade: B
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points.
Pat Spencer
23 minutes, 5 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 2-for-7 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 35.7% TS, +1
Spencer couldn’t get much going in this game. It was an especially rough first half for him, though he came out of the gates in the third quarter with some big plays. But mostly, he struggled.
Grade: C
Quinten Post
23 minutes, 6 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 3-for-7 shooting, 0-for-4 threes, 42.9% TS, -13
With Horford resting, Porziņģis sick, and Trayce Jackson-Davis in Toronto, Post was the only true center that the Warriors had. And he played like one. His signature three wasn’t falling, so he took up a more old school game. He scored in the paint, going 3-for-4, gobbled up nine rebounds in just 23 minutes, and played strong interior defense. It was fun to see!
Grade: B
Will Richard
17 minutes, 0 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 foul, -19
As we’ve grown accustomed to, Richard played some strong perimeter defense. Unfortunately, that’s about all he did. That’s not strictly a bad thing: it’s still impressive for a rookie to play more than 17 minutes and be comfortable not taking a single shot. But he just didn’t provide an impact in any area of the game, except on some defensive possessions.
Grade: C
Post-game bonus: Worst plus/minus on the team.
Brandin Podziemski
32 minutes, 16 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 7-for-18 shooting, 1-for-6 threes, 1-for-2 free throws, 42.4% TS, -1
My goodness, what has gotten into Podziemski on the glass? That’s now 15 boards in back-to-back games for the diminutive (by NBA standards) guard. Pretty magnificent stuff.
He struggled to score, but I liked a lot of the things he did on offense, the shots just weren’t falling. Keep rebounding like that, though, and the shots will eventually fall. Like Santos, Podz’s hustle and energy made good things happen, even where it isn’t statistically reflected.
Grade: B+
Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds.
Gary Payton II
12 minutes, 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 2-for-7 shooting, 0-for-4 threes, 28.6% TS, -11
Not a good game for Payton. His defense wasn’t as good as usual, and his offense was quite a struggle.
Grade: C-
Jonathan Kuminga
24 minutes, 27 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 9-for-12 shooting, 3-for4 threes, 6-for-7 free throws, 89.5% TS, +16
Hey, we might as well shout out Kuminga, who made his Atlanta Hawks debut and thoroughly dominated. Hawks fans are probably feeling really excited right about now. Way to go, JK.
Grade: A+
Tuesday’s DNP-CDs: Malevy Leons
Tuesday’s inactives: Jimmy Butler III, LJ Cryer, Seth Curry, Steph Curry, Al Horford, Kristaps Porziņģis, Nate Williams
