What we learned as Draymond’s return not enough in loss to Grizzlies

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What we learned as Draymond’s return not enough in loss to Grizzlies originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

The Warriors finally got Draymond Green back on the court after he missed more than a month serving an NBA suspension and then working his way back into shape. Stephen Curry also was back in the lineup after getting a rare day off.

It hardly mattered, as Golden State led most of the way then fell off in the fourth quarter and suffered arguably its worst loss of the 2023-24 NBA season, dropping a 116-107 decision to the injury-riddled Memphis Grizzlies on Monday at FedExForum.

Curry didn’t have his normal shooting rhythm and spent much of his night in foul trouble, but finished with a team-high 26 points. Green only scored seven points but still was effective with seven rebounds and four assists.

Jonathan Kuminga had 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Dario Šarić added 13 points and seven boards. Andrew Wiggins scored 16, and Klay Thompson was held to nine points and a team-low minus-25.

The Warriors committed 18 turnovers, twice what they had combined against the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks.

Here are the takeaways:

DRAYMOND’S RETURN

Green made his long-awaited return off the bench midway through the first quarter and looked like he was anxious to play.

He nailed his first shot, a wide-open 3-pointer, to kick off a 7-0 run by the Warriors, then sank a 20-foot jumper not long after that.

More importantly, the Warriors’ defense was much more effective than it had been during Green’s absence. The Grizzlies were limited to less than 32-percent shooting in the first quarter and 37.2 percent for the entire game.

Green was on his best behavior, too. During one break in the game, Green could be seen talking and laughing with one of the referees. That, in itself, is a major step forward for both Green and the Warriors.

RESTED CURRY RETURNS, TOO

Curry looked refreshed after his day off in Milwaukee and played a team-high 32 minutes while shooting 11 of 20 to go with eight assists.

Curry also spent a good chunk of the game playing off the ball when rookie Brandin Podziemski was in and running the…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/learned-draymonds-return-not-enough-015309077.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2024-01-16 01:53:09

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