LOS ANGELES — The Warriors led until the final 8.9 seconds when Los Angeles Clippers forward Paul George hit a go-ahead 3-pointer to hand Golden State a 113-112 loss on Saturday afternoon.
The Warriors fell to 9-11 on the year and lost their fourth consecutive road game, but head coach Steve Kerr saw more silver lining than cloud in the Warriors’ second 20-plus point blown lead of the week — following a 24-point blunder against the Sacramento Kings last week.
Here are observations from a strong performance that went awry down the stretch.
Trouble keeping a lead
The Warriors had a 19-point lead at the half and a 24-point early in the third quarter staring down the path to a breezy win. But with James Harden, George, Kawhi Leonard and Russell Westbrook, the Clippers are built to erase big leads. Harden took over, scoring 15 points in the third quarter to get them back into it.
All said, coach Steve Kerr didn’t mind the loss as much as the one in Sacramento. The Kings got to the line 42 times and the Warriors made two costly turnovers to blow the win, Kerr’s big red flags. On Saturday, the Clippers got to the line 14 times and the Warriors turned the ball over just 10 times.
“It was more them than us,” Kerr said of the loss. “I was really pleased with the way we played. You got a talented team and they picked up the pressure and kept us off the three point line the second half…To me it felt like we deserved to win today. We took care of the ball, we kept them off the foul line. We showed poise when they made their runs.”
Steph Curry had 16 points at the half, including an eight-point run to close it with the Warriors shooting 54.5% from 3 on 22 attempts. The flow stopped when the Clippers switched to zone defense and took away the 3, letting the Clippers stars chip away. Curry went 1-for-10 and the Warriors 15-for-44 in the second half.
Green sees their big blown leads as indications that this crew hasn’t learned to win together or close games consistently quite yet. Chris Paul and Green’s absences thus far have kept them off course, he says.
“We gotta learn how to win. Every year, groups are different. And each year, that particular group has to learn to win. And that’s been tested a bit, especially with guys out. (Paul) is a key cog when it comes to winning, so we have to figure that out and I have no doubt that we will,”
Draymond Green’s 3-point shooting
Green woke up a sleepy crowd with four 3-pointers in the first quarter, tying the most he’s had in one quarter since January of 2016. His 12 points were the most he’s scored in a quarter this season and his biggest total since he had 18 in that 2016 game against Denver.
Green finished with a season-high 21 points but missed the open corner 3 at the buzzer that would have won the game — he thinks Westbrook got a piece of it on its way up.
Teams will leave Green open beyond the arc because he’s a 31.7% career 3-point shooter. But he can give the Warriors a boost when he can take advantage of that space and knock down shots.
“Feels great,” Green said of his shot. “I just try to shoot it with confidence on the one’s that are there. Not overthinking it. I put a lot of work on my shot, so I think the main thing or me is just going into shooting it when it’s there.”
In 12 games, Green is shooting 47.2% on three attempts per game on average. Keeping defenses a little honest like he did on Saturday — and he did a good amount in the earlier part of his career — gives the Warriors’ offense an added dynamic.
Starting lineup change
Andrew Wiggins missed his second straight game nursing an injured index finger on his shooting hand, giving Moses Moody another shot in the starting lineup. Dario Saric got the start in place of Kevon Looney to help with spacing on the floor.
The change gave Golden State a spark from the tip. Similar to their win against Los Angeles on Thursday, the Warriors played with more pace and energy than in previous games — despite the loss.
Improved defense
Despite the Clippers’ comeback, it’s clear getting Green back has tightened up the Warriors’ defense and lessened some of the communication-related mistakes they were prone to through their losing streak. Through their two wins, they’ve held off any big scoring games by one of the Clippers’ many stars.
The Clippers’ style plays to the Warriors’ strength. Typically Golden State has committed more fouls and turnovers against the younger, longer, and quicker-twitch teams such as the Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder. The Clippers are older and run more stagnant.
Los Angeles sped the Warriors’ defense up in the second half, making it a seven-point game by the start of the fourth quarter as the game came down to the wire.
