The story many reporters gravitated towards after the Warriors’s 132-127 double overtime loss was Draymond Green’s Flagrant-1 foul on James Harden. The kick seemed inadvertent and he had plenty to say about the play.
But Green’s more pertinent comment had to do with the Warriors crunch-time offense. It hasn’t exactly looked superb to start the season.
Golden State went 1-for-11 in double overtime and stopped moving the basketball. Kevin Durant matched a season high with 39 points but took several isolation shots late in the game. Steph Curry (28 points, 4/13 on three) scored five quick points to start the first overtime, but was sporadic most of the night.
Green didn’t blame his superstars directly, rather blaming himself and other Warriors teammates for not setting them up with better shots.
“We didn’t shoot well and I think apart of that was we were just standing there,” Green said. “It turned into the Steph Curry show, the Kevin Durant show, and that’s not who were are. We move the ball, and then it turns into the Steph Curry show and then it turns into the Kevin Durant show. They are getting great shots.
“It’s not their fault that I was standing around at the top of the key, other guys were standing at the weak side watching them play. I would do what (Steph and KD) were doing too if everyone else was just standing there watching us. But that falls on a lot of us. We gotta’ keep moving. Move the basketball, body movement. I think for that team, if we do that, it’ll cause a lot of confusion.”
Durant saw things a little differently and was more optimistic postgame. He blamed the loss on a slow start to the game. The Rockets had the lead for both the entire second and third quarter, relied on 29 points from newcomer Ryan Anderson and a triple-double from James Harden (29 points, 15 rebounds, 14 assists).
“You have to tip you hat to them and move on,” Durant said.
