SAN FRANCISCO — Stephen Curry was in midseason form in the Warriors’ preseason finale Friday night.
If there was any question, Curry probably faked you out and sank a step-back 3 over your outstretched hand. After hitting the second of three trademark triples during a stretch late in the second quarter, Curry stumbled over a fan in courtside seats.
He appeared to pick up a slight limp on the next defensive possession, but Curry quieted any doubts about a possibly gimpy ankle when he shook one Portland defender out of his shoes, then another and switched hands as he leapt for a lay-up, which he completed as he fell to the floor and a whistle sounded, awarding him a well-earned foul shot on top of the made basket.
The Warriors used the onslaught of scoring to easily handle the Portland Trail Blazers, 119-97, and complete their first perfect preseason in franchise history.
“It’s just preseason and who knows how it’ll all play out but we’ve had a really good few weeks and feel ready to go,” coach Steve Kerr said afterward. “This group has a lot of veterans, guys who know how to play — good passers and shooters — so it’s an easy team to coach.”
Consider Curry’s performance a trailer of what’s to come this season.
His 41 points in 30 minutes were the most scored by any player in the NBA this preseason, and he needed only 19 shots to get there. He finished 7 of 14 from distance, heating up in the second quarter, when he scored 15 of his points on a perfect 5-for-5 from the field, and didn’t exit until late in the third quarter.
“He’s been building up perfectly from before camp started,” Kerr said of Curry’s offseason preparation. “It’s just amazing how he looks after himself, physically (and) emotionally. … The last few days he got a lot of individual work in. He’s clearly ready to roll for the regular season.”
Conditioning
Curry didn’t appear to need any additional tuneups before Golden State opens the regular season Tuesday in Los Angeles, but coach Steve Kerr was critical of the team’s conditioning in preparation for next week.
The Warriors may have wanted a “full dress rehearsal” in their final preseason game, but that wasn’t possible Friday, Kerr said, because players weren’t ready to go. The problem could persist into the beginning of the regular season, Kerr said.
“Frankly, guys are not ramped up enough to play the number of minutes we’d like them to play in the regular season,” Kerr said before Friday’s contest.
The Warriors’ starting five of Curry, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney and Jordan Poole played deeper into the second half than any previous preseason game. In 24 minutes apiece, Poole contributed 16 points, and Green added 10 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Nemanja Bjelica finished second in scoring with 12 points in 21 minutes.
Wiggins’ preseason struggles, however, continued into their fifth game. He scored eight points on 3-of-9 shooting in 22 minutes. He made only four of his 18 3-point attempts in the preseason after a 1-of-4 night from beyond the arc Friday.
Wiggins missed two days of practice and a game last week with a sore knee, which Kerr said has held him back this preseason. Still, he said he’s not concerned about the former No. 1 overall pick.
“We need his defense and his rebounding much more than we need his scoring,” Kerr said. “He’s probably a couple weeks away from having his conditioning where he wants it to be. That’s fine. That’s usually the case with all guys heading into the regular season.”
Preseason success
Of course, Kerr’s pregame assessment comes with the caveat that the Dubs navigated a preseason without losing a game, however meaningful, for the first time in franchise history. Their previous best preseason finishes came at 6-1 (twice; 2016, 2006) and 5-1 (1980).
What’s success in the record book worth in exhibition play? Recent Warriors history doesn’t offer much of a track record.
Golden State hadn’t finished a preseason above .500 for three years.
The Warriors started their first two title runs under the current regime with preseason marks of 6-2 and 6-1. But their most recent championship season started with a 2-2 preseason record, and they went 3-4 before setting an NBA record with 73 wins (but no Larry O’Brien Trophy) in 2015-16.
Roster spots
Curry wasn’t the only one to offer a preview of the regular season Friday night.
The Warriors’ rotations are coming more into focus as the preseason comes to an end.
Following the game, Golden State waived four players who were battling for the final roster spot: Avery Bradley, Gary Payton II, Mychal Mulder and Jordan Bell.
Kerr discusses keeping the 15th spot on the Warriors roster open and Avery Bradley, Mychal Mulder and Jordan Bell, who were waived. #DubNation #WarriorsGround pic.twitter.com/L1gqJH9jmL
— Bay Area Sports HQ (@BayAreaSportsHQ) October 16, 2021
Bradley had been among the first players off the bench in the Warriors’ first two preseason games but his playing time waned as the preseason went on and culminated with the veteran as a healthy scratch Friday.
Payton only got on the court in one preseason game after undergoing offseason surgery on his hernia. He scored 12 points Tuesday in Los Angeles but didn’t play or practice again while still recovering from the procedure.
Bjelica and Damion Lee were the first players off the bench Friday, followed by Otto Porter Jr. and Andre Iguodala. Rookie Moses Moody also saw significant minutes alongside the starters for the second straight game.
Juan Toscano-Anderson stepped aside so the Warriors could get another extended look at Moody, Kerr said afterward; he didn’t enter the game until the fourth quarter.
Kerr said the Warriors would leave the final roster spot open for now. Adding a 15th player comes at an additional financial burden because of the team’s status at the top of the luxury tax bracket.
If Golden State opts not to go with a 15th man on its opening night roster, that could mean the Warriors are confident in the contributions they’ll get from Moody in his rookie season.
The No. 14 overall pick in the past NBA draft has drawn praise for his basketball smarts and proven he can knock down the NBA 3-pointer, but he struggled offensively in his first extended showing Tuesday night.
Kerr was pleased with how he bounced back Friday.
Moody grabbed a hard-effort offensive board in the first half and made one of his two 3-point attempts, which gave him 3 more points than he finished with Tuesday night. He added a couple more impressive putbacks in the game’s final minutes to finish with nine points and five rebounds in 18 minutes.
