Finding the clear silver lining of Warriors’ early exit from the NBA Cup originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO – The NBA Cup was a chance for the Warriors to compete on the big stage, under brighter lights and brighter courts, even in mid-December. To make some extra money, to measure themselves against the best in the league and to prove that their winning culture has been restored.
That all came to a controversial end Wednesday night in Houston when the Warriors lost in the quarterfinals to the Rockets at Toyota Center, 91-90. In more ways than one, the loss may have been the best for the Warriors.
It dropped them to 14-10 after starting the season 12-3. The Warriors were vocal in their desire to reach Las Vegas for the semifinals and finals. Every win is important, and so is building winning habits. But sometimes a rest and reset is exactly what a team needs.
Especially during the kind of tight schedule the Warriors were dealing with.
“We have one game in the next seven days, so we’ll have four good practices,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Friday after practice at Chase Center. “I think it really allows us to address some of these situational things in our late-game and late-quarter offense.
“And it’s up to us as a group – coaches and players – it’s up to us to make these improvements and close out these games.”
Starting with their final group stage match in the NBA Cup, another controversial ending, but this time in Denver against the Nuggets, the Warriors played five games in just over a week. They went 2-3 in that stretch, beating the Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves at home, while also losing to the Timberwolves at home and to the Nuggets and Rockets on the road.
There was little time for rest and correcting mistakes that have bitten the Warriors at their worst moments. Now they have the opportunity to focus on both.
“I mean, it’s the silver lining,” Kerr said. “We would of course prefer to be in Vegas to play tomorrow, but that’s not the case. So let’s take advantage of the scheme. Get some rest, make sure the boys are healthy, get some good practices in place and be alert to what lies ahead.
During that grueling five-game stretch, in the middle of a month of tough games for the Warriors, a handful of players missed time. Draymond Green (left calf) missed two games, as did Andrew Wiggins (right ankle). Steph Curry (bilateral knee pain) missed one. Moses Moody (left knee) had to miss two second halves and was out for the entire last game in Houston.
Free time is needed. Time to focus on the little things is just as necessary when needed.
What seemed like a victory to punch their ticket to Vegas turned into yet another cold snap for the Warriors on Wednesday night. While going scoreless over the final three minutes, the Warriors had consecutive shot clock violations and went three possessions in a row without even getting a shot off.
Organization and execution are the Warriors’ latest buzzwords. Through their first 24 games, the Warriors have now played in 15 clutch games, including 12 of their last 14 and nine of their last 10. They are 7-8 in clutch games this season after going 24-24 last season despite Curry being the NBA’s Clutch Player of the Year.
“I think it’s really helpful for us to get a little more practice time,” Kevon Looney said. “During an NBA season, it’s very difficult to get really good workouts in. In this short time we have had more training than matches, so we have to work on all the execution things, all the little things that we keep talking about. on film that we can actually go to the practice track to work out the kinks.
When the Warriors left San Francisco for Houston, they packed up for an 11-day road trip that would have taken them from Houston to Las Vegas and then to Memphis and Minnesota. After losing, they took Thursday off before heading to the practice range on Friday.
After taking three days off from their previous game, Golden State welcomes back Klay Thompson and the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday and then doesn’t play again until Thursday, when the Warriors take on the Grizzlies in Memphis and then board a plane to play against to play the Grizzlies. Timberwolves at Minnesota on Saturday.
“We’re taking advantage of it,” Lindy Waters III said of extra training. “Unfortunately in the situation, but we have to stay in the present moment and know that we have a few training sessions where we can figure out where we can get better execution.
“We don’t get situations like this at all this season, so we’re just going to take advantage of it.”
Practice, even at the highest professional level, makes perfect.
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