The Golden State Warriors have shown over the last decade-plus that they can reach the highest of basketball highs by playing with a small lineup. But even in their best seasons, they’re prone to a few games where you find yourself questioning the efficacy of being a small team.
Tuesday in Florida was one such game, with the Orlando Magic halting the Dubs’ three-game winning streak. The Dubs didn’t play poorly, but they got absolutely brutalized by Orlando’s size, and lost 121-113.
Despite the clash
of styles, both teams committed to playing fast. It was a tremendously paced game, especially in the early going. The Magic were selling out to stop Steph Curry, and they were paying for that strategy, as Curry kept finding open teammates who were making jump shots and cutting to the hoop. But Orlando found some rhythm late in the opening quarter and took a nine-point advantage as the Warriors started to get sloppy. The Dubs halted the momentum quickly though, with a tremendous two-for-one: Jimmy Butler III got fouled and made both free throws, then the team forced a turnover on the other end. It was a dead ball, which gave Steve Kerr a chance to get Curry back in the game, and the team’s superstar responded by making a 30-footer a few seconds later, pulling the Warriors to within 36-32 after the initial quarter.
A pair of Butler buckets to open the second turned it into a game-typing 9-0 run, but then the Magic buckled down. They started to control the paint on both ends of the court, getting easy buckets and free throws on one side, and blocking shots on the other. Suddenly the lead was back to nine, and then to double-digits, and then all the way up to 15 points as the Warriors started to get sloppy.
Thankfully the dubs were able to figure some things out late in the quarter, and rattled off a 12-2 run that pulled them to within four points with a few minutes remaining in the half. But Orlando’s size loomed large over the Magic’s 67-60 halftime lead: they had a sizable rebounding advantage, and hot shot a perfect 20-for-20 on free throws, compared to just 10-for-12 for the Warriors.
It wasn’t a disastrous third quarter for the Warriors, but it wasn’t one of their typical second half explosions, either. The offense just didn’t look that good coming out of the break, and they quickly found themselves down by 14 points. They kept getting it back to single digits, but couldn’t quite get over the hump. It was one of those halves where the game was always close, but never actually felt up for grabs, and they trailed by eight points as we turned to the final quarter.
Butler wasn’t going to let the team go down without a fight though, as he kept scoring to open the fourth quarter, and keeping the game close. Still, it felt like it was Orlando’s game through and through, in large part because of the way it was transpiring. Orlando’s size resulted in easy buckets, emphatic dunks, and back-breaking second-chance opportunities, while the Warriors finesse approach relied on difficult shots and risky passes. There was an overpowering vibe to the way the Magic played, and it felt insurmountable.
And indeed, it was. The Warriors never got too close in the fourth quarter, with the primary excitement being that the game got chippy, and Butler and Jalen Suggs had to be separated on multiple occasions. But when the buzzer rang, the Warriors had lost 121-113, and their record had fallen to 9-7.
They’ll get a chance to finish their six-game road trip with a winning record tomorrow, when they visit the Miami Heat at 4:30 p.m. PT.
