The Golden State Warriors would love to have all, or at least most, of their big guns firing again Saturday night when they hope Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green will return for the team’s matchup against the Utah Jazz in San Francisco.
Despite riding the momentum of a two-game winning streak and staring at a stretch of 10 of 11 games at home, Warriors coach Steve Kerr opted to sit Curry (sore ankle), Green (rest) and De’Anthony Melton (rest) for their 131-94 home drubbing at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder on the front end of a back-to-back set Friday night.
Butler (illness) and Jonathan Kuminga (sore back) also did not play.
Kerr explained the type of decision the NBA often has frowned upon.
“With Draymond, that was easy,” he told reporters. “We’re in the midst of this five-in-seven (days), at his age (35), coming off the (three-game Eastern) trip, three in four starting (Friday). It’s an easy one for us to rest Draymond.
“Jimmy, we didn’t plan to (sit out), but he got sick (Friday) morning. Hopefully he gets better quickly.
“The schedule is what it is. When you have an older team, you have to navigate it as best you can, so we’re trying to do that.”
As opposed to Oklahoma City, which already had beaten Golden State twice this season, the Warriors have hosted Utah once and won that game easily, 134-117 on Nov. 24.
Golden State will play the second night of a back-to-back, and with only 10 healthy bodies on Friday, some Warriors players logged big minutes against the Thunder. Pat Spencer went 31 minutes and overcame 1-for-8 shooting from the field to record a game-high 11 assists.
All 10 available Warriors played at least 16 minutes, including veteran Al Horford, who figures to sit out the second night of the back-to-back.
The Jazz, meanwhile, should be well-rested after opening a four-game trip with a 118-101 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night. Utah had Friday off for its short flight to Northern California.
The Jazz are rested but not altogether healthy. Standout Lauri Markkanen missed his first game of the season in Los Angeles because of a bruised knee. And co-star Keyonte George sat out due to illness.
With Ace Bailey also missing the game, greater opportunities were created for several Utah players, including Brice Sensabaugh, who responded with a season-high-tying 20 points in 32 minutes.
“We’re just trying to take away from the positives,” Sensabaugh said earlier this week. “For me it’s about trying to find other ways to impact the game when my shot’s not falling. I’ll try to get stops on the defensive end, get to the paint and get to the line. Then I can keep my flow.”
With George (28 points), Bailey (21) and Markkanen (17) all in the lineup, Sensabaugh came off the bench in the earlier loss to Golden State. He contributed 16 points in 19 minutes.
The Jazz have lost two games in a row and six of eight.
