Golden State Warriors Blog – Page 41 – NBA Blog

Warriors take Game 1 vs Grizzlies

Warriors take Game 1 vs Grizzlies

Stephen Curry had 22 points and seven assists, and the Golden State Warriors wore down the undermanned Memphis Grizzlies in a 101-86 victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals Sunday.

Klay Thompson added 18 points and Draymond Green scored 16 to help the top-seeded Warriors roll to their 21st straight victory at raucous Oracle Arena. They led by nine at the half, 20 late in the third quarter and never let the Grizzlies build any momentum in the fourth.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Tuesday night in Oakland.

Marc Gasol had 21 points and nine rebounds, and Zach Randolph finished with 20 points and nine rebounds for a Memphis team missing point guard Mike Conley. He sat on the bench in a suit, his left eye still swollen, as he continues to recover from surgery to repair broken bones in his face.

— AP

After sweeping Pelicans, Warriors get rest time

After sweeping Pelicans, Warriors get time to rest

One really nice thing about tossing an opponent out of the playoffs as quickly as possible is that the winning team gets to relax and heal up before the next round begins. After sweeping the New Orleans Pelicans, the Golden State Warriors get to recover physically and study who they face next. It’s a luxury. Here’s the San Francisco Chronicle reporting:

During the next week, the Warriors want to mix rest with repetitions, treatment with training and all-out scrimmaging with sit-down studying. It’s a delicate balance that Kerr observed a handful of times in winning five championships as a player with the Bulls and Spurs.

But the Warriors might actually have a head start on some of those teams. They’re pretty healthy and rested already.

Point guards Stephen Curry’s arms are scratched and bruised from being held and grabbed, and power forward Draymond Green rolled his left ankle a couple of times in the series. But the only player to miss any time during the first round was reserve forward-center David Lee, who has almost fully recovered from a lower back injury.

Warriors sweep Pelicans in first round

Warriors sweep Pelicans in first round

The Golden State Warriors have quickly escorted the New Orleans Pelicans out of the the playoffs and into the offseason. Which is either rude or polite, depending on how you look at it. Rude, because nobody wants to be swept from the playoffs. But polite, because the Warriors ended the Pelicans quickly. They didn’t draw it out. No time was wasted. Time is valuable. Yeah. Anyway, here’s the San Francisco Chronicle reporting:

For about a month now, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has been waiting for his team to take its game to another level.

The wait is over.

They practiced most everything Kerr has preached this season in a 109-98 victory over the Pelicans on Saturday night to sweep the best-of-seven, first-round series.

The Warriors will play the winner of the Memphis-Portland matchup in the Western Conference semifinals, a series that could start next weekend in Oakland.

With a chance to close out the plucky Pelicans, the Warriors played nearly perfect ball. They outshot the Pelicans 54.2 percent to 22.7 percent from three-point range, dished out 28 assists to 10 turnovers and won in fastbreak points 20-0. The Warriors even beat New Orleans in rebounding (39-36) and paint points (44-40).

The stellar team stats came on the coattails of some brilliant individual efforts. Stephen Curry had 39 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, Draymond Green put up 22 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, and Klay Thompson added 25 points.

Warriors unleash amazing comeback to win Game 3 vs Pelicans

Warriors unleash amazing comeback to win Game 3 vs Pelicans

The Golden State Warriors unleashed an amazing comeback to push Game 3 of their first round playoff series against the New Orleans Pelicans into overtime, and then coming away with a shocking win. Golden State now has a 3-0 series lead. Here’s CSN Bay Area reporting:

The Warriors became the third team in postseason history to overcome a deficit of at least twenty points entering the fourth quarter, and win.

Steph Curry’s miraculous game-tying 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left in regulation will be remembered forever, but he wouldn’t have been able to play the role of hero without a lot of help from his teammates.

“We were pretty desperate,” Steve Kerr said following the historic win. “We went small. We put Shaun Livingston in there. We gave Steph a brief rest to start the fourth … our small unit in the fourth quarter just came in and turned it into a track meet.

“Draymond was fantastic. When you go small and you have to guard (Anthony) Davis, you’re really not getting much help on the backside and Draymond thwarted several lobs and plays at the rim, and got rebounds and then we were able to get out and run.

But I’m gonna have to watch the tape. I’m not quite sure what happened. I’m as startled as everybody else.”

Was Draymond Green the real 2014-15 Defensive Player of year?

No Defensive Player of Year award for Draymond Green just yet.

Here’s CSN Bay Area reporting on versatile Warriors talent Draymond Green:

Was Draymond Green the real 2014-15 Defensive Player of year?

After finishing second in the voting for NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Warriors forward Draymond Green says he’s not angry. Disappointed? Absolutely. Puzzled? No doubt.

He would truly like to hear an explanation for such fluky, aberrant voting.

Green had more first-place votes than winner Kawhi Leonard (45 to 37) but lost the overall voting because he was completely left off 42 ballots.

“Now, I don’t understand that,” Green said Thursday morning. “I don’t understand that one. But it is what it is.”

Each voter lists three players for the award. Leonard, the San Antonio forward, received 332 points overall. Green finished with 317 points. Clippers center DeAndre Jordan finished third, with 261 points and 32 first-place votes.

Warriors aiming for sweep of Pelicans

Warriors aiming for sweep of Pelicans

Here’s CSN Bay Area reporting on the Golden State Warriors, who were the best team in the league in the 2014-15 regular season and hope to keep it rocking all playoffs long:

The Warriors are up 2-0 despite some obvious difficulties with New Orleans. With the elongated form of Anthony Davis blanketing half the court, the Pelicans have been disruptive on defense. On offense, they’ve utilized screen-and-rolls to get Davis near the rim or, more damaging, to give Quincy Pondexter and Eric Gordon open looks beyond the arc.

But if the Warriors fix those two problems — and they believe they will — it’s realistic to believe they can win twice at Smoothie King Center and achieve the sweep.

“I like the position we’re in,” coach Steve Kerr told CSNBayArea.com. “I don’t think we’re ahead of the game; you don’t get ahead of the game until you win on the road. But I feel good. I know we can play better.”

The Warriors have put together impressive stretches but no truly impressive game, partly because New Orleans is a well-coached, high-quality team. But the Warriors expect better.

Aaron Craft named D-League Defensive Player of Year

Aaron Craft named D-League Defensive Player of Year

Santa Cruz Warriors guard Aaron Craft has been selected as the 2015 NBA Development League’s Defensive Player of the year by a vote of the league’s 18 head coaches. Craft will be honored with a trophy for his efforts by NBA D-League President Malcolm Turner prior to tonight’s playoff game against the Oklahoma City Blue, which will be broadcast live on ESPNNEWS at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Craft (6-2, 192, Ohio State) played in all 50 regular season games for Santa Cruz, anchoring a Warriors defense that held opponents to league-lows 42 percent shooting from the field and 99.6 points per 100 possessions. Santa Cruz’ opponents averaged 102.2 points, good for third-lowest in the NBA D-League. Individually, Craft averaged an NBA D-League best 2.5 steals while topping the league with a 1.4 steal-to-turnover ratio. Additionally, he averaged 9.2 points, 6.2 assists and 4.9 rebounds in 36.1 minutes.

“Aaron has shown his aptitude, intensity and desire on the defensive end all season long,” said Chris Alpert, Vice President of Basketball Operations for the NBA D-League. “His ability as a lock-down defender has been a tremendous asset for coach Casey Hill and the Warriors this season. We congratulate Aaron on an impressive rookie campaign and this well-deserved award.”

Craft helped lead the Warriors to the West Division Championship and a 35-15 record, tied for the best in the league. The team earned the top overall seed in the Western Conference and currently owns a 1-0 lead over the Blue in the first round of the 2015 NBA D-League Playoffs.

“Aaron is one of the soundest defenders I’ve ever been around and without a doubt he deserves this award,” said head coach Hill. “He has been phenomenal for our team all year long and it has been amazing to coach him.”

A four-year contributor at Ohio State, Craft was a two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year (2012, 2014) and was named the NABC Defensive Player of the Year as a senior in 2014. Undrafted last season, Craft earned an invitation to the Golden State Warriors training camp in September 2014.

Shaun Livingston suspended for hitting Dirk Nowitzki in groin

Shaun Livingston suspended for hitting Dirk Nowitzki in groin

Golden State Warriors guard Shaun Livingston has been suspended one game without pay for hitting Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki in the groin, it was announced today by Rod Thorn, President, Basketball Operations.

The incident occurred with 1:28 remaining in the third quarter of the Warriors’ 123-110 victory over the Mavericks at American Airlines Center.

Livingston will serve his suspension tonight when the Warriors visit the San Antonio Spurs.

The New York Post reports: “No one plays post defense and does that in normal post defense,” Cuban said after Livingston, a former Net, essentially reached between the big German’s legs and upper-cutted, resulting in a flagrant foul. “That’s not normal post defense. It was obvious.”

To view the play, click on this link.

Steve Kerr sets NBA record for most victories by a first-year head coach

Steve Kerr sets NBA record for most victories by a first-year head coach

Golden State Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr has established a new NBA record for most victories by a first-year head coach in league history, notching his 63rd win of the season with tonight’s 123-110 victory over the Mavericks in Dallas. The previous record for wins by a first-year NBA head coach was 62, a mark shared by Paul Westphal (Phoenix, 1992-93) and Tom Thibodeau (Chicago, 2010-11). Kerr’s winning percentage (.829) also ranks as the highest among head coaches in their first full season at the helm, topping Red Auerbach’s debut season with the Washington Capitols (.817) in 1946-47. With tonight’s win, which improved Golden State’s record to 63-13, the Warriors will have home court advantage throughout the 2015 NBA Playoffs.

Kerr, who was hired as the 25th head coach in Warriors franchise history on May 19, 2014, has led the Warriors to franchise records of 63 wins and 28 road wins, guiding the team to its first Pacific Division championship since 1975-76. He was named Western Conference Coach of the Month for games played in both January and March, becoming the first coach in Warriors history to earn the monthly honor twice in a single season. Golden State, which set a new franchise record with a 16-game win streak from Nov. 13-Dec. 14, has won its last 12 games, posting multiple double-digit win streaks in the same season for the first time in franchise history.

With 63 wins, the Warriors have seen a 12-game improvement over last season’s 51 victories, which is tied for the second-largest win total increase of any 50-win team in NBA history. Golden State leads the league in points per game (109.9), assists (27.4), field goal percentage (.477), three-point percentage (.397) and point differential (+10.7).

David Blatt and Steve Kerr named NBA Coaches of Month for March, 2015

David Blatt and Steve Kerr named NBA Coaches of Month for March, 2015

The Cleveland Cavaliers’ David Blatt and the Golden State Warriors’ Steve Kerr today were named the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Coaches of the Month, respectively, for games played in March.

Blatt led the Cavaliers to the best record in the East during March at 11-4 (.733). The Cavaliers averaged 107.0 points and surrendered just 97.9 points in March, en route to posting the best differential in the conference at +9.1 ppg. Cleveland went 5-0 at Quicken Loans Arena, where it has now won 16 consecutive games.

Kerr guided the Warriors to the NBA’s best record in March at 16-2 (.889). The Warriors averaged 108.4 points and surrendered just 96.3 points, which accounted for a +12.1 ppg differential, good for second in the West. Golden State closed the month with 10 consecutive wins, including six against teams that would be in the playoffs if the season ended today.

Other nominees for Coach of the Month were Boston’s Brad Stevens, Brooklyn’s Lionel Hollins, Oklahoma City’s Scott Brooks and San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich.