The Golden State Warriors have seen shooting guard Klay Thompson and Draymond Green struggle since being on the court together, lacking the same efficiency that made them such important cogs of the offense. A 108-103 loss to the Utah Jazz on the road exemplified that there was something off with this offense, as the right shooters were getting the ball but were unable to connect.
Head coach Steve Kerr cited the issue circles around the Warriors getting decent but not great shots — which ultimately showed, as the Warriors shot only 5-of-22 from distance without Stephen Curry's five 3-pointers.
“Well, it’s not surprising, honestly,” said Kerr, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “We’re not moving the ball, we’re not playing the way we’ve played the last few years, where the ball’s really moving and we’re generating great shots. We’re taking decent shots, not great shots. If you’re not taking great shots, you’re not going to take as high a percentage.”
The Warriors, who rank atop the league in assists per game with 27.6, notched only 18 on Wednesday night, while Utah swung the ball effectively, racking up 30 assists despite shooting under 40 percent from the field.
“They were selling out to stop us three (Curry, Thompson, Durant). The ball is not going to be flying around when you’re playing a great defensive team like that,” said Kevin Durant. “People are starting to catch up to what we do, starting to scheme for us a little bit more. I know we want to get that ball moving, 30 assists and 300 passes, but tonight it’s not going to be that way. We still had a chance to win. That’s why I say we can win either way.”
Thompson went 3-of-12 from the floor and 0-for-4 from deep, dropping him to a measly 34.4 percent on 3s this season, by far the worst mark of his NBA career. Green, who once hit 39 percent and scored 14 points per game in 2015-16, is shooting a career-worst 18.9 percent from deep. His poor marksmanship has become laughable, as teams now leave him wide open at the 3-point line, as evidenced by this video:
Golden State has been through these rough waters before, most recently in the Western Conference Finals against the Houston Rockets, a team that honed into their key shooters and made life hell for them.
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