San Francisco, Jan. 30 (BUS): Klay Thompson made his biggest shot yet from his two-and-a-half year injury return, sinking smoothly into the 3-pointer with 12 seconds left to send the Golden State Warriors to a 110-106 win. Over Keri Irving and the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night.
Irving didn’t finish and scored 3 of his own moments after that and scored 32 points while hearing boos from the Bay Area crowd directed at the unvaccinated Nets star, The Associated Press reports.
Thompson finished with 16 points. Stephen Curry hit the green light with three pointers with 5:09 left and five free throws over the final 1:44 to score 19 points as Irving continued his lead over the other end without the injured Kevin Durant and James Harden.
Andrew Wiggins contributed 24 points and eight rebounds as the Warriors stalled late, including Irving’s missed reverse attempt a minute ago on the left. Jordan Paul added 17 points and six assists.
Brooklyn’s Patty Mills knocked out three 3-pointers in the final 9:46, to tie the game in 96 with 4:42 remaining and finished with 24 points. He also had a steal and assist in a dunk for James Johnson who tied it at 93 with 6:17 to go.
After Wiggins fouled 3 with 30 seconds left, Mills converted two free throws after a foul.
Harden was a late scratcher on the nets with his stressed right hand that broke out Friday in shooting and weightlifting.
Irving gets to play in road games only under the New York vaccination mandate, but was booed loudly by the Bay Area crowd during pre-game introductions. With San Francisco vaccination mandated for large indoor events, the only person other than the restaurant allowed inside the Chase Center had to be.
Curry went 6-for-10 from deep during Thursday’s 124-115 win over Minnesota after going 3-for-23 in the 3s in the previous two games. He was 3 of 10 from long range on Saturday and added eight assists and seven rebounds.
Curry missed his first three points and only took two after one quarter, when the Warriors picked up 14 points from Wiggins in a 6-of-9 shot to advance 31-20. Curry was 1 for 7 in the middle of the first half. He hit his first 3 and 21 seconds into the third as the Warriors went in the 20-9 round to lead 74-56 at the 5:51 mark.
Durant didn’t make the trip like the 2017 and 18 NBA Finals MVP with the Golden State nurses hurting his left knee. Brooklyn won 134-117 at the Chase Center on February 13 last year in Durant’s comeback.
Golden State dropped to 10 injured players and tasked rookie Moses Moody with the Santa Cruz Warriors but did enough to wrap up an impressive 7 matches with 6-1.
Kerry factor
Not only was Irving’s presence in the road games difficult for coach Steve Nash to navigate given the number of injuries Brooklyn has sustained.
“It’s great to be back. We’ve had a lot of injuries and outages this year, availability issues, to add a player to his level, even if he was just on the road, he was sorely needed and he’s been fantastic for our group,” said Nash. The last eighteen months for us is that we haven’t had a long period of health. So having a player playing on the road and at home isn’t much different from what we’re up against week to week anyway.”
Hints
Nets: Mills, who starred at nearby St. Mary’s College, started 0-for-5 before settling in. …G/F Joe Harris is making a comeback from left ankle surgery that was a frustrating operation. “Hopefully it will be resolved soon but again this is outside my education,” Nash said. …Nash would love to return to the Bay Area, where he previously worked as a player development consultant with the Warriors. “When I was here I wasn’t planning on becoming a head coach,” he said. “So when I was here I was just trying to be a resource for everyone.”
Warriors: Kevin Looney grabbed 15 rebounds. …Andre Iguodala missed his fourth game in a row with a left thigh injury and won’t return for the next two-game trip through Texas as Kerr initially hoped but perhaps in Thursday’s home game with Sacramento. He will remain at home for rehabilitation while the team travels. … F Nemanja Bjelica missed the match with back spasms.
next one
Nets: In Phoenix on Tuesday night after winning their final trip to the desert 128-124 on February 16 last year, but losing 113-107 to the Suns at home on November 27.
Warriors: in Houston on Monday night after winning five-a-side against the Rockets and two in a row on the road in the series.