The Warriors don't want to make a habit out of blowing double-digit leads at home. One is unfortunate; two is a serious red flag. Three would earn the Warriors an unflattering reputation.
After blowing a 21-point lead to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday at Chase Center, the Warriors now have melted down in back-to-back home games. While it's a troubling sign for a team with a championship or bust mindset, Golden State is hopeful the collapses against the Mavericks and Denver Nuggets will serve as an important lesson for a relatively inexperienced roster when it comes to postseason play.
"Obviously, it has been two home games in a row where it's been a rough fourth quarter for us," Steph Curry told reporters Sunday night. "We got to figure out how to maintain our energy even if shots aren't falling. Because that's what it might be like in a playoff game where you got to grind out a win and a team on the other side, they have a little bit of life, and they take advantage of it.
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"So I'd like to say it's a good lesson to learn even though it sucks to go through it."
The Warriors built a 21-point lead midway through the third quarter Sunday but went ice cold in the fourth quarter as Dallas outscored Golden State 33-13 in the final frame.
Without Klay Thompson (illness), Draymond Green (back), and Andre Iguodala (back), the Warriors have a lot of youth on the floor alongside Curry, Andrew Wiggins, and Kevon Looney. That can be a blessing and a curse. There will be nights where that youth gives the Warriors a huge boost and nights where they stumble and must learn from their mistakes.
"I think it's actually good to go through and feel it," coach Steve Kerr said after the loss to the Mavericks."This is what it feels like in the playoffs. This is what it feels like when you are playing against a really good team. The game is never over.
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“That's why we stress all the details we do over and over again. That's why we practice everything. We made so many mental mistakes: Fouling coming from the wrong places to foul, not being at the rim in rotation, and when they went small, our defense kind of broke down. We let that affect our offense, so we have to learn from that and grow from it.”
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Experiences like Sunday's loss to the Mavericks and the Feb. 16 loss to the Nuggets could serve as vital moments for a relatively young Warriors team.
Aside from the four dynastic pillars of Curry, Thompson, Green, and Iguodala, only Otto Porter Jr. (40 games), Nemanja Bjelica (7), Andrew Wiggins (5), and Looney (42) have seen postseason action. Gary Payton Jr., Jordan Poole, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, James Wiseman, and Juan Toscano-Anderson will be getting their first taste of postseason action this spring.
While it's easy to point to the extended absence of Green and Iguodala as a reason the Warriors are struggling on defense, Kerr doesn't want his team waiting on their return to ratchet things up.
"We got to understand, NBA games turn on a dime," Kerr said. "It happens quickly, and you got to be able to withstand that. We can't just say, well, when Draymond and Andre are back, we'll be better. It doesn't matter who is out there. We've got to do a better job of executing under pressure and maintaining confidence."
No lead is ever safe in the playoffs, and you have to have the mental fortitude to take punches, steady yourself and keep going.
The Warriors have been unable to stop an avalanche in their last two home games. With only 21 games remaining, Golden State is running out of time to cure what ails it and enter the postseason fully prepared to survive a gauntlet and bring home another championship.