In a Christmas Day matchup, the Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks mostly shot three-pointers like Ralphie Parker wielding a Red Ryder BB Gun. But when the Mavs made a comeback and threatened the Warriors late,
Steph Curry rose up over rookie Cooper Flagg and sent the Mavericks to be, presumably with visions of sugarplums and clutch threes dancing in their heads.
Curry shot only 2-for-10 from deep but finished with 23 points and four assists in the 126-116 win. Flagg led all scorers with 27 points on 13-for-21 shooting, just four days after celebrating his 19th birthday. I think we can assume he was extra fired up because of all the people who gave him gifts this week and explained it was for his birthday and Christmas.
The Warriors missed their first seven three-point attempts of the game and even chimney expert Santa Claus would agree, that’s a lot of bricks. They still finished the quarter with 40 points thanks to the return of Al Horford, who sank four threes in the last 3:43, the last three coming off Jimmy Butler assists. Clearly, Jimmy was Big Al’s Secret Santa this year.
Butler had an excellent game, finishing with 14 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists. He dunked, he dished, he shot 5-for-10 and finished +14 on the night.
That was only the second-best plus/minus on the team behind De’Anthony Melton’s +19 in 24 minutes, where he scored 16 points, dished three assists, blocked a shot, got a steal and committed zero turnovers. The combination of Melton and Brandin Podziemski (13 points, eight rebounds, four assists), along with Butler, let the Warriors stretch their lead to 15 points with Curry sitting for six minutes. Only Flagg scoring and assisting on baskets in five straight Mavericks possessions kept Dallas from getting blown out by halftime.
After the game, Curry said of Flagg, “The league is in good hands…the future is bright.”
Speaking of people who are not in good shape, Anthony Davis left the game early in the second quarter with something the announcers referred to as “right groin spasms,” which is an injury I can’t remember anyone ever suffering in any sport. It was a huge benefit for the Warriors, who always have trouble with The Brow, and AD finished with three points, three rebounds, and two blocks.
Who had the best block of the game? That would be Gary Payton II, who delivered a two-handed rejection of Flagg during a very solid six-point, five-rebound, five-assist effort in 15 minutes that should guarantee him a place on Steve Kerr’s nice list going forward.
Off Kerr’s naughty list? Draymond Green, who exchanged his traditional holiday gift of apologies with Kerr this week. Facing the Mavs, still a big team even with Davis in the trainer’s room, Kerr split the center minutes among Green, Quinten Post (six points, 0-for-4 on threes), Horford, and Trayce Jackson-Davis, who continued his recent run of steady play with 10 points and five rebounds in 13 minutes, along with a steal and a block.
Of course, Christmas is about reuniting with the ones you love — but D’Angelo Russell didn’t play! (Brandon Williams showed why he took Russell’s job with a 26-point afternoon). But Klay “Thee Stallion” Thompson did return with a quiet seven-point night with a huge ovation and lots of hugs, while Curry played in his Splash Brother’s signature ANTA sneakers.
Next, the 16-15 Warriors go on a little East Coast swing. They’ll play in Toronto Sunday, head to Brooklyn Monday, and spend New Year’s Eve in Charlotte, where they may not get to party at the Curry Brothers’ old haunts with a home battle with the Oklahoma City thunder looming Jan. 2. But Horford is back, Klay Thompson looks happy, and the Warriors got a Christmas dub. God bless us, every one!
