What we learned as Dubs lose to Grizz, fall to 7-29 on road originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
The Warriors on Saturday took one of the worst road records in the NBA into the building that shows no mercy on visiting teams.
It did not go well for them inside FedExForum in Memphis.
The Warriors fell behind in the first quarter, spent the rest of the evening trying to catch up to the Grizzlies and never did, taking a 133-119 loss that drops them back at .500 (36-36) and extends their road losing streak to 11.
Six Warriors scored in double figures, led by Jonathan Kuminga, who finished with 24 points. Jordan Poole totaled 21, while Stephen Curry had 16 and Klay Thompson 14.
The Grizzlies raised their home record to 29-5, the best in the NBA.
Here are three observations from a defeat that drops Golden State’s road record to 7-29 and 0-3 on this trip:
Punished from beyond the arc
The Grizzlies usually don’t rely on a lot of 3-point shooting, averaging fewer than 12 made triples per game. Desmond Bane and Luke Kennard are the only legitimate threats.
Not so in this game. Memphis dropped 12 3-balls in the first half. Moreover, the efficiency was remarkable, a blazing 63.2 percent. Four different players – Dillon Brooks, David Roddy, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Kennard – drilled at least two before halftime.
The tone was set. The Grizzlies shot 47.4 percent (18-of-38) beyond the arc for the game. It’s incredibly difficult to win, home or away, when allowing such wonderful shooting from distance.
Where did the Warriors go wrong? There was hot shooting, but most of the blame goes toward such frequent issues as overhelping and late rotations, leading to open looks from distance.
Kuminga brings his best
Where would the Warriors have been without Kuminga? Probably blown out by halftime.
The second-year pro came off the bench and 24 seconds later drained Golden State’s first a 3-pointer of the game. He scored 11 points in eight first-quarter minutes, accounting for nearly half of the team’s total of 23.
Kuminga finished with 24 points, on 8-of-16 shooting, including 4-of-7 from deep. He brought energy on both ends, even grabbing eight rebounds, an area the coaching staff has emphasized, and blocking a shot.
JK also played smart, doing a nice job of deciphering when to attack the rim and when to make Memphis pay for defending him so casually on the perimeter.
Though JK fumbled an open transition dunk late in the third quarter, this was, under the circumstances, one of the better games of his brief career.
Vets were running on empty
The Warriors did not arrive at their hotel in Memphis until around 1:30 a.m. CT. The quick turnaround was evident, particularly so with the veterans.
Curry, who scored 31 points Friday night in Atlanta, finished with 16 on 5-of-15 shooting. Dillon Brooks will take credit, but Steph’s energy was running low.
Klay Thompson scored 14 points on 6-of-17 shooting. Kevon Looney, coming off a career night – 18 points, 16 rebounds – against the Hawks, had 10 points and three rebounds.
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All three faded badly in the fourth quarter. After the Warriors got within two in the opening minute of the quarter, the Grizzlies took off, leading by as much as 20 before final buzzer.
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