The Golden State Warriors struggles went from bad to worse with a 105-111 home loss to the Indiana Pacers at the Chase Center. The Warriors have fallen to 3-10 in their last 13 games, while the Pacers continue their climb up the East standings with their fifth win in a row.
The Pacers had a balanced scoring attack tonight, with all five starters scoring in double-digits. They were led by Myles Turner‘s 23 points (9-14 FG) and 10 rebounds, while Pascal Siakam contributed 20 points (9-18 FG) and five rebounds. Tyrese Haliburton had 16 points (6-11 FG), six rebounds, and 12 assists alongside backcourt partner Andrew Nembhard’s 15 points (6-13 FG).
The only Warriors who showed up tonight was Jonathan Kuminga off the bench, responding to Steve Kerr’s pregame criticism with an emphatic 26 points (9-16 FG), eight rebounds, and four assists. Stephen Curry had a stinker with 10 points (2-13 FG) while Trayce Jackson-Davis had a solid 13 points (6-9 FG) and eight rebounds as a starter. Andrew Wiggins had 16 points (7-16 FG) and Buddy Hield scored 13 (5-11 FG).
Let’s analyze the major factors that led to this crucial loss for the Warriors.
Stephen Curry With Another Offensive Letdown
Stephen Curry had one of the worst games of his career last week when he scored just two points on zero made field goals against the Memphis Grizzlies in a 51-point loss. While he responded by leading the Warriors to a strong win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, tonight was a shocking repeat of the Grizzlies game in the face of aggressive Pacers’ defense.
Curry scored 10 points with five rebounds, seven assists, and three blocks, but going 2-13 from the field and not making a field goal until the final minute of the third quarter gave the Warriors a handicap they couldn’t overcome. The Grizzlies’ loss could be written off because it was an uncharacteristic loss for the entire team, but a slightly better Steph performance tonight could have given them a crucial win.
Curry is averaging 14.3 points on 29.3% from the field and 29.0% from three over the last three games, not looking like the superstar that the Warriors need to be contenders.
The load on him as a 36-year-old guard is pretty significant, so the Warriors might be inching closer to major personnel changes or strategic changes to better withstand nights like this from Curry if they become more common going forward.
Pacers Slight Offensive Edge Was All They Needed
The Pacers were fortunate to have restricted Curry to as quiet a game as he had because this result easily could’ve swung over to the Warriors who slightly outperformed them across major categories. Golden State grabbed 44 rebounds to Indiana’s 43, while dishing 29 assists compared to the Pacers’ 26. Both teams recorded seven steals, but Golden State had seven blocks compared to Indiana’s four. They also had identical team turnovers (11).
What swung this game for the Pacers was their offensive efficiency as a team. They went 45-92 from the field (48.9 FG%) while the Warriors went 35-90 (43.3%). Both teams had a poor night from three-point range, with Golden State going 12-38 (31.6 3P%) and Indiana going 11-35 (31.4 3P%).
There really wasn’t much to separate these teams outside Indiana having a slightly better night as a team-oriented offense where the stars did what they were supposed to do. The Warriors got a big night from Jonathan Kuminga, but Curry performing 12 points under his season average was always going to be a hard boulder to overcome.
Warriors Need To Trust Jonathan Kuminga More
Before the game, Steve Kerr made it clear that he wasn’t happy with Jonathan Kuminga’s performances of late, averaging 11.0 points (21.7 FG%), 4.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in their last two games before tonight. He had a big night off the bench when most of the Warriors struggled, keeping them in the game until trailing off in clutch time.
Kuminga had 28 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and one block while impacting almost every facet of the game. In light of Curry’s slow start, it seemed Kerr and the rest of the Warriors trusted Kuminga more to lead the offense, a role he shined in tonight. While he does have inconsistencies in his game, it’s clear he’s highly talented and could break out as the team’s secondary option if needed.
Returning him to the starting lineup should be the first step, with even Draymond Green being in favor of Kuminga replacing him in the starting five. It’ll be a bold decision for which Kuminga’s offense needs to be on point while his defense needs to hold the fort given how important Draymond is to the team’s defense.
Hopefully, there’s an opportunity for Kuminga to break out as his talent needs to be nurtured more.
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