The Golden State Warriors roared back from an 0-2 deficit to rout the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night, winning Game 3 114-97. Here are three reactions from the short-handed defending champions' season-saving victory over their Northern California rivals.
Suddenly, Warriors' ‘Strength In Numbers'
Breaking news: These aren't the early-dynasty Dubs of the mid-2010s. Down not just Draymond Green but also Gary Payton II on Thursday, though, Golden State's vaunted preseason depth suddenly seemed as real as it has as any point in 2022-23.
Donte DiVincenzo epitomized his team's lively, multi-effort performance, stuffing the stat sheet with six points, eight rebounds (four on offense), eight assists and four steals—a completely different player than the one who didn't take a shot in 12 minutes off the bench in Game 2.
The Kings felt DiVincenzo's relentless pressure all over the floor. Two of his steals came on out-of-bounds plays as he hounded Sacramento guards, and he rebounded out of his area on both ends.
DiVincenzo's screening and decision-making loomed especially large without Payton and Green. He was a frequent partner for small-small pick-and-rolls with Curry, and when he wasn't involved in the action directly, DiVincenzo took consistent advantage of winning numbers games as a passer.
He'll definitely be earmarked for a bigger role in Game 4, even with Golden State at full-strength. So will Moses Moody.
But Moody's gifts as a shooter and two-to-three dribble driver weren't what kept him from getting a regular rotation role during the regular season. The 20-year-old would've certainly seen more minutes if he always played with the physicality and intensity on defense he did in Game 3.
Moody was effective in the Warriors' switch-everything small-ball lineups, not getting abused when matched up with Fox, and regularly made his presence felt as a help defender and on the defensive glass. This isn't quite lockdown one-on-one defense, but it's all Golden State needs from Moody going forward.
Jonathan Kuminga didn't start after all. Kerr went small with Green out, replacing him in the opening five with Jordan Poole—who was one of just two Dubs to struggle on Thursday, along with Klay Thompson.
DiVincenzo and Moody weren't the only bench players to pick up that slack. After a rough start, Kuminga finally made a lasting impact, dazzling as a finisher in space and getting more comfortable throwing his body around in the paint.
Probably most importantly, Kuminga was an impact defender, largely able to stick with Fox and Monk off the bounce.
Anthony Lamb actually entered with Kuminga for the first time to begin the second quarter. He didn't play after halftime, but that's not due to a lack of production—of the highlight-reel variety or otherwise.
Watch how many times he affects this transition defensive possession before his pinpoint block of Monk's three-pointer.
Literally everyone gave that type of effort with Golden State's back against the wall, the end of a dynasty dawning with a loss to fall behind 0-3 in the first round. Green's suspension could've rocked the Warriors, and Payton being a late scratch could've spooked them even further.
Instead, the Dubs buckled down and banded together, reminding a raucous home crowd of how this golden era began in the first place.
Steph Curry, predator
After assisting on less than 50% of its scores in a disjointed Game 2, Golden State doled out dimes on 31 of its makes on Thursday, good for a 77.5 assist percentage—well above this team's league-leading average. But all that extra ball and player movement didn't stem from the Warriors diving further into their “beautiful game” off-ball attack.
The Dubs still fared much better there than they did in the first two games of this series, buoyed by lineup combinations that better spaced the floor. With a passer and screener like Green watching from home, Kerr simply leaned harder on his superstar when Golden State needed Curry most.
Golden State made Curry an alpha dog playmaker from the opening tip of Game 3, running high ball screen after high ball screen with guards and wings to target Sacramento's most vulnerable defenders. That distinction often fell to Keegan Murray, who looked exactly the part of an overwhelmed rookie on offense and defense before Curry fouled him out late.
The Kings eventually pulled out their box-and-one to try and keep Curry in check, a gambit that didn't fool the Warriors. As ever, Curry's real impact on Game 3 exceeded his gaudy line of 36 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
On this early fourth quarter possession, a simple ball screen gets two defenders on Steph in Sacramento's box-and-one. He “shorts” the pick-and-roll by finding DiVincenzo one pass away, who has the angle to hit Kuminga on the roll for a soaring finish.
Kevon Looney makes one of his many smart passes on the roll here, but Curry's gravity creates all the space he needs to find Thompson for this open corner three with a few minutes left in the fourth.
Curry didn't just set a tone offensively.
He wasn't immune to getting caught on screens in the Domantas Sabonis hand-off game while guarding Kevin Huerter, but Curry's hands and overall activity were a factor all night.
The Warriors' unique offensive system exists because of Curry, but he's not the only one who makes it go. Thompson and Green are progenitors, too. What a testament to Curry's peerless all-around playmaking and shot-making gifts that Golden State can all but abandon it during a must-win playoff game, turning him into a pick-and-roll predator of the highest order.
Expect to see more of that Curry in Game 4.
Dominant Kevon Looney leads charge on offensive glass
The Warriors grabbed 18 offensive rebounds on Thursday, their fourth-most in any game this season.
Looney, the league leader in that category over the 82-game grind, turned in another epic rebounding performance, finishing with 20 boards all by himself. A whopping nine of those came on the offensive glass, where his stick-um hands and incessant pursuit of the rock helped lead to 24 second-chance points, 12 more than the Kings.
Looney also tied his career-best with nine assists, consistently making the right play as a roller.
This early second-half sequence is Looney's dominant night in a nutshell.
Looney outdid Sabonis on the glass, made the Kings star big man work for 15 points on 14 shots and did his best Draymond impression as a numbers-advantage playmaker. Game 3 is the type that makes Looney a Warriors icon for die-hards, and a perpetually underrated cog in their still-breathing dynasty on the national scene.
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