Two days after a bitter loss on their own floor, the Warriors took to the road and got a measure of retribution.
Their 115-105 win over the Trail Blazers at Moda Center in Portland took some of the sting out the overtime loss to the Blazers on Thursday at Oracle Arena.
The Warriors weren’t perfect by any means, but there were more reasons to be encouraged than discouraged.
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SIGN UP HERE Here are some positives culled from a victory that, for the Warriors, had the sweet taste of satisfaction:
POSITIVE
Hello, Klay
As much as he tried to deny it, Klay Thompson is having the worst shooting season of his career, with more games under 40 percent (11) than over 50 percent (seven). He was missing roughly two of every three 3-balls. He was the team’s best offensive player in this game, with 32 points on 12--of-21 shooting, including 4-of-5 from deep. His body language was better. He was grinning and expressing appreciation to his shooting hand.
News
It’s too early to know if this is the start of a turnaround, but it has been more than a month since Thompson looked this good.
POSITIVE
That looks familiar
Draymond Green spent much of the week disgusted with his poor shooting and live-ball indecision. Even his defense was spotty. He rectified every aspect of his game except the shooting (1-of-6). Green scored only 3 points but put his fingerprints on this game in most every other way. He rebounded well, his defense was stellar and his smarts were on full display. The Warriors was plus-27 points when he was on the floor.
That’s the active and disruptive Draymond Green that thwarts opposing offenses.
POSITIVE
Splashing again
The Warriors, who are No. 1 in field-goal percentage, entered with a 10-game streak during which they failed to make 50 percent of their shots. They hit that number exactly on Saturday. Thompson was a big part of that, but so were Kevin Durant (10-of-19) and Kevon Looney (5-of-6). Furthermore, they shot 48 percent from beyond the arc, the first time in nine games they were above 40 percent.
This performance proved the Warriors still know how to exploit a soft defense.
NEGATIVE
It was a wonderful throw, but . . .
Give Andre Iguodala a baseball bat and he’ll show you a nice hitting stroke. Give him a baseball and, based on the way he throws a basketball, he can probably bring the heat. Iguodala was ejected at the end of the first half for throwing the ball into the stands with enough force that game officials concluded it as a “hostile act.” The ball went far beyond the backboard and maybe 20 rows into the stands.
The Warriors survived without Iguodala in the second half, but he’ll want to avoid doing that again.