Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant matched his season-high 17 rebounds during a 121-111 win over the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday, adding 22 points, seven assists, five blocks and three 3-pointers in 38 minutes.
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Golden State played almost flawless basketball on both ends of the court to start the game, ending the first quarter with a 42-17 lead. However, he committed six of the team’s turnovers and certainly was not without fault.
Durant’s defense with the Warriors has been nearly as important to the team as his offense.
Their defense was just as crisp, not allowing any fast-break points or points in the paint. The Raptors managed to take 103 shots for the game, as opposed to the Warriors’ 81 shots. It’s the second time he has collected at least five blocks in a game this season. Following a 15-2 run the Raptors got the lead down to 7 points. It was a stretch that saw them shoot 1-of-9 and commit two turnovers while generating few good looks. But here are the top seven players on the team, in terms of minutes played, with their current year of National Basketball Association service time: Lowry (11), DeRozan and DeMarre Carroll (eight), Patrick Patterson (seven), Cory Joseph (six) and Jonas Valanciunas and Terrence Ross (five). The Warriors turn the ball over too much – they turned the ball over on 20 percent of their possessions Wednesday night.
However, Golden State’s Curry problem disappeared against Toronto.
The Warriors also had 33 assists. We had two careless ones at the end of the quarter, and then the first part of the second quarter was kind of a mess.
Guards Kyle Lowry (40) and DeMar DeRozan (39) both put in heavy minutes, and reserves Terrence Ross (34) and Patrick Patterson (33) also were called upon for extensive duty, leaving the Raptors in an unenviable position against the Suns. They’ve gone 120 games (!) without back-to-back losses, and I don’t see them falling to the Raptors at home. Shaun gives us a lot of length, the ability to go up and get a rebound on a missed shot.
The Warriors lost a tough one, falling 109-108 to the Cavaliers on Christmas Day.
While the defeat to the Cavs ended Golden State’s three-game east coast road trip, the Raptors are trying to beat a third consecutive western conference team on the road after escaping Portland and Utah with narrow victories. He was, I’m sure, upset how the game went for him just like I was upset after the game.
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The two were together for six years in Oklahoma City, Kalamian, Brooks’ assistant coach, missing out on Durant’s first and final years with the Thunder. The craziest thing about their 42-17 lead going into the second quarter, though? Amidst an abundance of crisp passing, smart shot-taking, and a concerted effort to limit turnovers and make the simple and smart play, the Warriors were up by 25 at the end of the first. But so far, the issue has been overpassing.
