No Kuminga and Green? No problem as Warriors escape Orlando with huge win
THAT'S CHAMPIONSHIP RESOLVE! The Golden State Warriors defeated the Orlando Magic 101-93, marking their most gritty win of the season. Despite Jonathan Kuminga missing due to knee tendinitis and Draymond Green being ejected, the Warriors managed to pull off the game. This game was the second game of a Florida back-to-back and was against a rested team. Despite these challenges, Golden State found a way to escape with a victory. Andrew Wiggins was instrumental in the win, scoring 23 points and taking over in the fourth quarter. Rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis also contributed significantly, scoring 14 rebounds in a career high 33 minutes. Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry both scored 15 points.
Publié : il y a 4 semaines par Daniel Hardee dans
Let me tell you something right now, my brothers and sisters in Dub Nation. We just witnessed the Golden State Warriors pull off arguably their most gritty win of the season, knocking off the Orlando Magic 101-93 last night.
• None Second game of a treacherous Florida back-to-back, dealing with the Miami Heat in night one and then hitting up the Magic Kingdom on night two.
• None Orlando is currently slated to be a PLAYOFF team in the East. They had last played on Saturday, March 23rd and were fully rested up coming into this game. They’re young, they’re hungry, and a struggling team like the Dubs is exactly the kind of matchup they want.
• None Jonathan Kuminga missed the game with knee tendinitis, a scary thought considering he’s probably the most athletically dynamic player the Warriors have on both defense and offense.
• None Draymond Green got ejected within the first four minutes, sending Stephen Curry into a temporary depression the likes of which Dub Nation has never seen.
And with the surging Houston Rockets nipping at Golden State’s heels in the standings for the 10th seed and final play-in spot, this was the kind of game that could have immediately spiraled out of control in a season that has been disturbingly inconsistent.
But somehow this team found a way to escape with a gutsy victory. I wanna give a big shout out to Andrew Wiggins for remembering he was the second best player in Golden State’s 2022 NBA Finals run and playing like it on a night the Dubs desperately needed the talent of the former All-Star and #1 pick.
His 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field included six rebounds and 2 blocks. And he absolutely took over in the fourth quarter, scoring 13 of the team’s 29 points in the final frame.
WIGGINS ISLAND LIVES! I’ll always be a believer in 2-Way Wiggs, and although this season has not been his best showcase, games like this prove he absolutely has another gear he can climb to that makes the Warriors elite.
And in Kuminga’s absence, Wiggins balling like that was absolutely neccessary. You know what else was important? The rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis snagging 14 rebounds in a career high 33 minutes! That’s called taking advantage of the opportunities when they arise.
Golden State’s reserve guards impacted the game in a big way as well, with Gary Payton II going 5-of-5 from the field for 10 points and 3 steals. He’s such a weapon to have off of the bench, able to come in and keep GSW’s flow going offensively while disrupting the enemy with his gluetrap defense.
Also off of the bench was third-year man Moses Moody, who scored 12 points in 24 minutes, adding 5 rebounds and 3 assists. The reserve guard with the biggest plus/minus was Brandin Podziemski, who was +10 and snagged 9 rebounds in 21 minutes.
It’s great that the Warriors can call on those guys to supplement the firepower of the Splash Bros. Klay Thompson scored 15 points in his second straight game back in the starting lineup, while Stephen Curry funneled all his frustration from Green’s ejection to dagger the Magic in the closing minutes.
This has to be the most disrespectful Night Night celebration we’ve seen so far. SKIPPING DOWN THE SIDELINE IMPISHLY WHILE STARING INTO THE EYES OF HIS VICTIMS. And then kicking over the chairs in a show of victorious rage? That’s the Emperor of the Golden Empire for ya.
This was the kind of game that reminds us in Dub Nation that you can never quite count this team out, no matter how many obstacles are ahead of them, self-inflicted and otherwise.