© Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
OAKLAND — Golden State’s 126-120 loss to the visiting New Orleans Pelicans did not lack entertainment. Thunderous alley-oops, attempted rebuttals, three-pointers sprayed all over the court, and reactionary bellowing of oohs and aahs sounding throughout Oracle Arena provided fantastic action.
This was expected. Golden State entered Saturday night leading the NBA with 113.8 points per game, with the Pelicans’ 111.4 point average at fourth overall.
Saturday night featured two teams on different missions.
For the Warriors, Saturday’s loss was an attempt to rebound from a 20-point defeat to the Indiana Pacers, which Golden State head coach Steve Kerr called “embarrassing.” Unlike the Warriors, the New Orleans Pelicans, which visited Golden State in fifth place, are fighting for their playoff future amid a year featuring incredible parity. Five Western Conference teams entered Saturday night within half a game of each other for the No. 4-8 seeds.
Both teams matched blow for blow, culminating in a one-possession game in the final minute. Trailing 121-119, the Warriors fed Kevin Durant, who dominated the Pelicans to the tune of 41 points and 10 rebounds.
Durant caught the ball at the top of the key and backed down Pelicans point guard Rajon Rondo, seemingly the matchup Golden State wanted due to Durant’s height advantage. But Rondo picked the ball loose from Durant, forcing a turnover. Pelicans guard E’Twaun Moore then drilled a mid-range shot to extend the lead to four. After a timeout, Golden State missed on the other end, ultimately leading its second straight loss.
Saturday night was also the second straight game in which Golden State allowed 126 points.
From the opening tip, the Pelicans scored whenever and wherever they pleased, via back-cuts, open threes, contested threes, mid-range jumpers, or floaters. New Orleans made its first nine attempts of the game. At the end of the first quarter, the Pelicans’ 70 percent shooting yielded 40 points in what resembled an All-Star Game.
New Orleans cooled off a bit in the second quarter, but entered the half leading 67-65, shooting nearly 60 percent shooting and 22 assists. The frontcourt of Anthony Davis and Nikola Mirotic combined for 37 points at the break.
Fortunately for the Warriors, their own hot shooting kept them within striking distance. They started the game 12-16 from the floor. Golden State’s attack was well-dispersed, including hot shooting from guards Quinn Cook (15 first half points) and Nick Young (eight first half points).
Golden State clamped down in the third quarter, holding New Orleans to 21 points.
Perhaps no string of plays epitomized Saturday night’s game more than a series of dunk attempts late in the third quarter. Seconds after Davis skied for a one-handed alley-oop slam, Warriors forward Damian Jones tried to one-up him, elevating and nearly dunking on Mirotic. It seemed he was hit midair, but there was no foul called.
The Pelicans continued to match the Warriors during every mini run, capitalizing on the Warriors’ 17 turnovers. New Orleans finished with a whopping 39 assists, their second-most of the season. Davis and Mirotic combined for 62 points.
Golden State’s most glaring issue is its lack of defense, but its offense showed up. Durant led the way with 41 points, including 19 in the third quarter. Cook has continued to shoot well, scoring 21 points on 5-7 shooting from three-point range. Klay Thompson added 18 points.
Golden State’s final regular season home game ended on a sour note, but the team will return to Oracle Arena next week for the 2018 NBA Playoffs. The Warriors are firmly entrenched as the Western Conference’s No. 2 seed. They will wait to see how the rest of the conference plays out, including which team will fall in the No. 7 seed as Golden State’s first round opponent.