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Three observations from Warriors’ come-from-behind win over Pelicans

By

Jake Montero

/


© Kyle Terada | 2019 Jan 16

Here are three observations from the Warriors’ 147-140 victory over the Pelicans on Wednesday night.

Curry’s third quarter explosion sparks comeback

On the back-end of a road-home back-to-back, the Warriors looked expectedly sleepy in the first half on Wednesday. Golden State woke up after the break, however, and made up for a five-point halftime deficit and then some with a wild third quarter performance.

Stephen Curry led the charge going 7-of-8 from long range while dropping 23 points in the frame. Curry has now gone 28-of-49 from deep in his last three games. It’s the first time in NBA history a player has made at least eight threes in three consecutive games.

The quarter ended on a strange note, with Andre Iguodala giving the Warriors the lead on a unique flip shot at the buzzer while getting fouled, and then banking the and-1 to give Golden State a one-point lead heading into the fourth.

The quarter breathed life into Golden State, and helped propel them to complete the come-from-behind victory in the fourth quarter. After arguably their most impressive showing of the season in Denver the night before, Wednesday’s win was nearly as impressive considering the circumstances. Golden State has now scored 289 points combined in their last two games. Both teams also combined for 43 made 3-pointers, breaking the record of 41 set earlier this year when the Warriors played the Kings.

The Warriors appear to be peaking ahead of DeMarcus Cousins’ return on Friday.

Draymond goes toe-to-toe with AD

The New Orleans Pelicans entered Wednesday’s contest with the third-ranked offense in the NBA. They lived up to that billing against the weary Warriors defense in the first half, shooting 45.3 percent from the field and 50 percent from deep while dropping 71 points. Using mostly an eight man rotation, New Orleans had five players in double figures 24 minutes into the game.

That didn’t continue into the second half, however, when Anthony Davis was forced to shoulder the majority of the offensive load. The MVP-candidate led all players with 41 minutes, and finished with an impressive line of 30 points, 18 rebounds, and seven assists.

As fatigue began to hit Davis in the fourth quarter, Draymond Green caught a second wind. Davis’ decision to leave Green open at the three point line backfired, with the forward knocking down two huge corner 3s that ultimately proved to be the difference in the game.

Green had maybe his best all around offensive game of the year, scoring 17 points (4-of-7 from 3) while adding 14 assists and just one turnover. Green’s 3-point percentage improved from 23.9 percent to 27 percent after Wednesday’s game. Green now has 51 assists and six turnovers in his last five games

Two unexpected dunks highlight first half

Wednesday’s game featured a number of wild dunks by both teams, including a couple from two players you might not expect. Klay Thompson must have heard Kevin Durant’s postgame comments on Tuesday, when the forward jokingly called Thompson’s dunks unimpressive, and said that he needs to get more elevation for a guy who stands at 6-foot-7. Thompson responded with a flying two-handed hammer in transition.

Shaun Livingston got in on the action as well, turning back the clock with an unexpected reverse jam.

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