Even when it seems like everything’s going wrong for the Golden State Warriors, it’s still hard to write them off.
Golden State looked to be in at least some trouble Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings. They trailed by three points at the half, and also had star forward Draymond Green ejected by that point after he drew two technicals protesting a call. However, the Warriors promptly went on a 22-0 run in the third quarter and never looked back. They wound up with a convincing 109-86 win. (Coincidentally, that 23-point margin is Green’s number.)
A huge factor in that win was shooting guard Klay Thompson, who finished with 35 points, five rebounds and four assists in 30 minutes and really caught fire in the second half. Kevin Durant also had 21 points and seven rebounds, while Steph Curry had 13 points, nine assists and six rebounds. JaVale McGee also played a prominent role, adding nine points and 10 rebounds.
The dominance the Warriors posted in the third quarter was particularly remarkable. That 22-0 run came over just six minutes, and the 42 points they scored in the quarter overall against Sacramento’s 15 gave them a plus-27-point differential. That was the largest such differential they posted in any quarter this year. It also made some basketball writers not so thrilled about their halftime opinions:
My job is to analyze the NBA and I'm terrible at it pic.twitter.com/bHe60nVQKQ
— Eric Freeman (@freemaneric) February 16, 2017
They don’t call me the best color commentator in the business for nothing, folks. https://t.co/Pu26MFeVRR
— Dan Devine (@YourManDevine) February 16, 2017
Hey, those takes are easy to understand. The way Golden State played in the first half, there were reasons to worry about what was next for them. That was especially true after Green’s exit. The Warriors managed to overcome the doubters in fine fashion Wednesday, though. If they can keep that up, they’ll be tough to beat.
