The Phoenix Suns walked into the Chase Center for NBA Opening Night and walked out with a 108-104 win despite missing summer acquisition Bradley Beal. Fans were not impressed with how the Warriors played, roasting various players and ruing the decisions the franchise made over the summer.,
We'll be back at it on Friday. pic.twitter.com/OYMgOjXVND
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) October 25, 2023
Chris Paul’s debut didn’t impress fans, as he went 0-6 in the first half.
Chris Paul on the Warriors just doesn’t make sense.
— Ⓜ️archese (@MrPartTime17) October 25, 2023
One fan joked about Paul joining the Warriors as a way for him to finally sabotage the franchise that has stopped him from winning titles before.
chris paul couldn’t beat steph so he waited until he was washed to go to the warriors and facilitate their downfall from the inside. pettiness masterclass
— jeff (@DedicationHoops) October 25, 2023
Fans already think Paul will be on his way out by the end of the year.
it will be a miracle if Chris Paul finishes the season as a Golden State Warrior
— Slightly Biased (@BiasedSlightly) October 25, 2023
Even Andrew Wiggins and Klay Thompson were heavily criticized for their performances.
Wiggins and Klay got outplayed by Josh Okogie pic.twitter.com/mEsKlGEjpU
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) October 25, 2023
Klay was being mocked intensely, especially after contract extension talks fell apart due to Klay wanting a lot of money and guaranteed years.
Klay after a another disasterclass pic.twitter.com/bBtTnHOVua
— 🦇 (@EasyCantMiss) October 25, 2023
Some fans did overreact and deemed Paul and Thompson as players who cannot contribute to a winning situation anymore.
CP and Klay have had great careers. But it’s safe to say at this point neither put consistent pressure on the rim or create downhill situations in space. Kerr can’t just have Steph run off screens like a mad man and hope that fixes everything. Put the ball in his fuckin hands
— Malaga Drive Hoops (@HoopsDrive) October 25, 2023
Andrew Wiggins had one of his worst games in recent memory with Golden State tonight, inviting fan wrath.
Wiggins -22 in a game the Warriors lost by 4. That is a yikes.
— Tim Kawakami (@timkawakami) October 25, 2023
These performances have some Warriors fans wanting to see a youth movement take hold of the franchise.
Kuminga has outplayed Wiggins and Moody has outplayed Klay tonight. That’s a lot of money being terrible at once
— 🫵👍 (@AndyKHLiu) October 25, 2023
The Suns had the clear-cut best player on the court with Devin Booker, who dropped 32 points, six rebounds, and eight assists while shooting 61.9% from the field. Kevin Durant struggled and got 18 points and 10 rebounds on 31.8% shooting. Jusuf Nurkic provided exactly what the Suns wanted and had 14 points with 14 rebounds on the night, while Josh Okogie played a huge role with a 17-point cameo.
The Warriors saw Stephen Curry and everyone else turn up in the third quarter, outscoring the Suns by 21 points. But they couldn’t compete in the fourth with the entire team struggling to make shots, only converting 35.6% of their total shots.
Curry scored 27 points on 40.0% shooting and was still the best Warriors player on the floor tonight. Chris Paul struggled to score but did show his playmaking prowess with 14 points and nine assists on 26.7% shooting. Klay and Wiggins both shot 33.3%, with scores of 15 and 10 points, respectively in unimpressive showings.
The Warriors Have A Long Way To Go
This was the first game of an entirely new group without their defensive anchor, Draymond Green. The Suns were also missing Bradley Beal, so the Warriors won’t look at this loss as one where they just lost because of one player’s unavailability. They got outplayed for most of the game and couldn’t convert the win after outscoring the Suns 40-29 in the third quarter.
Phoenix’s offense looked clunky with a heavy emphasis on isolation ball, but Booker is showing that he can be a facilitator on the squad. He may not be the best half-court playmaker, but he can spot basic passes that led to good scoring opportunities today. Even with Durant having a bad night and Beal out with injury, Booker carried the load and empowered his teammates to succeed.
Golden State won’t have such an apathetic shooting performance again, but to start your season like this at home is not a good sign. The blame can’t even be put on a single player, as you’ll be hard-pressed to find any player on the squad who can avoid responsibility. Curry did his part, especially late in the fourth, but there was just no offensive cohesion for the Warriors.
Hopefully, they can tap into the magic they did during the third quarter and be able to extract that level consistently over the course of a full game.
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