What DiVincenzo wants Dubs to learn from his poster dunk originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
PORTLAND, Ore. — Klay Thompson’s first-half flurry and eventual seven 3-pointers aren’t what gave the Warriors their biggest spark Wednesday night at Moda Center. Neither were Jordan Poole’s 38 points and seven threes himself. What lit a fire under them most came in the second quarter.
Donte DiVincenzo flew through the air and put Drew Eubanks on the kind of poster that’s a kid’s dream. The slam went viral, and also serves as a lesson to the Warriors in their 125-122 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.
The moment in hand, however, even surprised DiVincenzo.
What was going through his head when the 6-foot-4 Warriors guard was getting ready for takeoff?
“Nothing,” DiVincenzo said. “I don’t even jump that way. I jump the other way. I went back and watched it. I thought he was going to block it. It was cool.”
Instead of being blocked, DiVincenzo powered through contact and threw down the vicious dunk. After dapping up a handful of hyped Warriors teammates, DiVincenzo went to the free-throw line and finished off a momentum-making three-point play.
The fifth-year pro remembers a number of big dunks he had in his college career at Villanova. His hops have taken center stage since he was proving himself on Philadelphia playgrounds and developing into a Delaware high school star at the Salesianium School. DiVincenzo also recalled a dunk he had on Jon Henson earlier in his NBA career, mostly because Henson was his former Milwaukee Bucks teammate.
He never had hammered one home quite like this, though.
“What do you mean? That’s No. 1!” DiVincenzo said in the middle of being asked where the dunk ranks in his career. “Nah, it was good. It felt good, it was really cool.”
Now comes the lesson that DiVincenzo wants his Warriors teammates to hear loud and clear.
“I think the biggest thing about that is afterwards, everybody was hyping each other up, and I think that’s something that we need moving forward and to keep doing that. Celebrate each other and celebrate each other’s successes on the court. It’ll go a long way for us.”
All of the Warriors’ bench was on their feet celebrating DiVincenzo and holding each other back from the court. That hasn’t always been the case this season on the Warriors’ bench.
The vibe can be a game on mute and the energy is lackluster at times, especially from younger players who aren’t seeing the floor as much as they’d like. Not with DiVincenzo. He knows how important those little details are and what that does for a team.
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In college, he was a two-time champion and grew into a first-round pick despite only starting 12 games in three years. DiVincenzo won a ring with the Bucks in his third year as a pro. That also is the only season he has been a full-time starter. He’s one of the few veterans in the Warriors’ second unit, bringing needed leadership and a sense of steadiness to a young and unproven group.
The proof is in the results, too. DiVincenzo’s three-point jam began a 17-4 run for the Warriors over the final four-and-a-half minutes of the first half. Golden State’s defense caused four turnovers in that span. Offensively, they were attacking and sinking shots from deep.
Before DiVincenzo’s dunk, the Warriors trailed by nine points. They then went into halftime with a four-point lead, capping off a 40-point second quarter.
“That’s what I’m saying. It’s a dunk, it’s an And-1 dunk. But everybody celebrating that, now we’re going down the other side and we’re all locked in,” DiVincenzo said. “[Jordan Poole] is picking up guys as soon as they cross halfcourt. Draymond [Green] forces two turnovers, and when Draymond forces two turnovers, you can see everybody’s mood on the defensive end.
“Everybody’s celebrating that. If we can put our energy towards one another and have that good spirit, that good mindset and not ‘me’ but be about ‘we,’ it goes a long way.”
We over me: It’s a concept all on the Warriors must collectively buy into in a hurry if they’re going to help themselves out on what is becoming a more and more difficult road to repeating as champs.
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