What we learned as Wiggins fuels Warriors’ comeback win

What we learned as Wiggins fuels Warriors’ comeback win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

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SAN FRANCISCO – Stephen Curry had 23 points and eight assists as the Warriors won their fifth straight home game, knocking off the Atlanta Hawks 120-97 at the Chase Center on Wednesday.

Andrew Wiggins scored 27 points with seven rebounds as Golden State bounced back a heartbreaking loss to the Los Angeles Clippers two days earlier. Trayce Jackson-Davis added 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Draymond Green had another gumbo night overall (nine points, seven rebounds, nine assists, 1 steal, two blocks) for coach Steve Kerr’s squad.

The Western Conference-leading Warriors improved to 11-3 and will face three contending teams in the coming days. After road games against the New Orleans Pelicans and San Antonio Spurs, Golden State returns home to play the Brooklyn Nets on Monday before hosting conference contenders Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets followed by back-to-back games against Minnesota Timberwolves at Chase Center.

At one point, it looked like it could be a scary stretch for the Warriors. Now, it looks like just another opportunity for Golden State to add to what is already a promising season.

Golden State certainly showed up in top form against Atlanta, though he learned earlier in the day that guard De’Anthony Melton will undergo season-ending knee surgery.

Even without Melton, the Warriors had it pretty easy against the Hawks.

Golden State led by 31, had one of the best shooting nights of the season (47 of 100) and dished out 36 assists.

About the only thing that went wrong was when second-year guard Brandin Podziemski — who wore a face mask earlier in the season after suffering a broken nose — was hit in the face early in the fourth quarter and was down for several moments before going off. the dish slowly. Kerr said after the game that X-rays on the injury were negative.

The Warriors got off to a fast start, dropping a season-high 41 points on the Hawks in the first quarter. Buddy Hield had eight points during the opener, but it was Curry, of course, who provided the signature moment when he made a basket while falling to the floor and was fouled, then completed the three-point play.

Golden State took a 67-42 advantage into halftime and held a 15-point lead heading into the fourth quarter before going on to win.

Here are the takeaways from Wednesday’s game:

Waters gets the first crack by splash

After liking what he’s seen from Lindy Waters III in previous weeks, Kerr gave the fourth-year pro the first shot at replacing Melton in the starting lineup. Waters, who has been solid both off the bench and in a starting role in the 2024 season, scored 10 points and was a plus-16 in 23 minutes

Waters scored the Warriors’ first points of the night on a sweet baseline floater, then spent most of his first shift defending Hawks point guard Trae Young. Young took just one shot in the first quarter en route to a 4 of 12 shooting night.

All of that should be enough to keep Waters in the lineup, though Kerr said before the fight that Podziemski could also factor into the equation.

Melton finally found his rhythm with Golden State on both ends when he got hurt, so his absence will be tough to overcome no matter who Kerr turns to.

Bounce-back Night For Bench

The Warriors have the best set of reserves in the NBA, and after a bad night against the Clippers two nights earlier, Golden State’s bench was back to scoring points in the win over the Hawks.

Paced by the combination of Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga, the Warriors’ bench outscored the Hawks’ 37-36. The way Golden State’s starters were scoring, the bench wasn’t as much of a factor as it had been, but it was still encouraging to see them do what they do best.

At this rate, it is very possible that the Warriors will challenge for the title of best bench ever. The 2018-19 Los Angeles Clippers hold the NBA record for highest bench average at 53.2 points per game. match. Golden State entered Wednesday’s game averaging an NBA-leading 56.4 points.

Do it with defense

As much as the Warriors have been known for their offensive fireworks, they are proving to be a very good team defensively – a point that was driven home emphatically against the Hawks.

Atlanta was held 19 points below its season average of 116, shot just 35 of 105 from the field (12 of 46 3-pointers) and committed 17 turnovers that led to 22 points for Golden State.

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