OAKLAND -- The Warriors on Wednesday night delivered their most impressive performance of the season, with Kevin Durant providing the foundation and Stephen Curry handling the pyrotechnics. Still, there were visible imperfections.
Here are two positives and two negatives culled from a 144-122 rout of the Washington Wizards:
Positives
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Curry continues his incandescent start
No one in NBA history has started a season with the deep-shooting brilliance shown thus far by Curry. It’s hard to imagine him finding a higher level than was displayed in this game.
He scored 23 points in the first quarter (8-of-11 shooting, 5-of-6 from beyond the arc), 31 in the half and 51 for the game. He did this damage in less than 32 minutes.
Asked what could have been done to stop Curry, Wizards guard Bradley Beal offered an unfiltered reply.
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“Probably foul the s--t out of him,” he said. “That’s probably what we should have done. And even when he did that, he was still making them. So I don’t know.”
For the record, Curry was 10 of 10 from the free-throw line, where he is 20 of 22 this season. He’s shooting 55.0 percent (60 of 109) overall, 52.4 percent (33 of 63) from deep.
How nice it is to share
The Warriors recorded a season-high 37 assists, on 53 field goals. After averaging 25.7 assists in the first three games, they’ve posted back-to-back games with at least 30 helpers.
For the second consecutive game, at least six players totaled at least three assists, with Draymond Green ringing up 12 -- 11 in the first half -- to lead the way and Durant adding seven more.
The Warriors have reached 30 assists 92 times since the 2015-16 season. They are 86-6 in those games.
Coach Steve Kerr pointed out the team’s passing levels had been below norm and that he wanted to get back to their standard. It seems the players are committed to doing that.
Negatives
About that defense
When the offense is lighting up the scoreboard, it’s much easier to overlook poor defense. A 22-point victory is nothing to complain about, right?
Wrong.
The coaching staff and the team’s veterans speak less about final scores than about building good habits. One of those habits is playing the kind of team defense that leads to championships.
That means switching seamlessly, not blowing assignments, being smart with help-side defense and, above all, taking on the personal challenge of defending your man.
There were numerous lapses in each of those categories, which is how the Wizards piled up 72 points on 52 percent shooting in the first half. That the Warriors tightened up after halftime is indicative of defense being discussed at halftime.
Curry aside, triples still hard to come by
The Warriors shot 46.9 percent from beyond the arc -- an outstanding number that becomes much less impressive when Curry’s statistics are removed.
While Curry’s 11-of-16 showing was phenomenal, non-Curry 3-point shooters were 4 of 16. Klay Thompson was 1 of 5 from beyond the arc. Durant was 1 of 3, and Jonas Jerebko and Andre Iguodala each 0 of 2.
This continues a season-long trend. While Curry is shooting better than 52 percent from deep, his teammates are foundering along at 25.0 percent.
Durant says he’ll have to “get back in the lab” is make corrections. Thompson says his 3-ball will come; history suggests he is correct. Until those two get going, the overall numbers will continue to be depressed.