What we learned as Warriors outlast Pelicans in Steph's return

What we learned as Warriors outlast Pelicans in Steph’s return originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

With Steph Curry back and the injury-riddled New Orleans Pelicans extremely undermanned, the Warriors were back in the win column Friday night at Smoothie King Center, clawing their way to a 111-95 victory.

How they did so wasn’t pretty, nor was it super encouraging. The Warriors didn’t get their first lead of the night until the 4:51 mark of the second quarter. It was a challenge all game long to beat a 20-win Pelicans team that was without the majority of their top players.

Seemingly, the Warriors got better the longer the game went on. After scoring only 21 points in the first quarter, the Warriors scored 29 in the second, 33 in third and outscored the Pelicans by 15 points, 28-13, in the fourth.

Curry, after missing the previous two games to a pelvic contusion, returned and scored 23 points in 34 minutes. He went just 7 of 21 from the field and 5 of 16 on 3-pointers, but his flurry in the second quarter was vital to the Warriors outlasting the Pelicans. Curry also dished a team-high six assists and swiped a game-high three steals.

Joining Curry, Jimmy Butler gave Golden State an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double. Jonathan Kuminga (16 points), Quinten Post (15 points) and Buddy Hield (11 points) also provided needed points off the bench.

Here are three takeaways from the Warriors snapping their two-game losing streak.

Three is the magic number for Curry. On his third 3-point attempt, Curry was back on the scoreboard after missing two games. That also accounted for the Warriors’ first made 3-pointer of the night after failing on their first 10 attempts.

By then, however, Curry already had four assists and two steals. Curry only scored three points in the first quarter, slicing the Pelicans’ defense with his passing. And then, Curry’s offense arrived in the second quarter.

After getting his legs back under him, Curry exploded for 13 points in the second quarter, going 5 of 8 from the field and 3 of 5 behind the 3-point line. He found his stroke from deep, and turned the jets on. While Curry scored 16 points in the first half, the rest of the starters combined to score 12.

Curry in the second half received more help from his supporting cast, and scored seven points of his own. There’s no way Curry is satisfied with his showing, but having him on the floor clearly made all the difference.

Oftentimes, a strong performance from Kuminga jumps off the screen. Think poster dunks and multiple highlight reel plays. But in the Big Easy, the little things went a long way for Kuminga.

Steve Kerr used Kuminga as a screener for Curry multiple times, and even switched things up by having Curry setting inverted screens as well. Kuminga’s actions as a screener allowed him to be utilized offensively in efficient ways. At halftime, Kuminga was the Warriors’ only player in double figures aside from Curry, dropping 10 points on 4 of 7 shooting.

All four of his made shots through the first two quarters were within 10 feet. Plus, Kuminga also tallied five rebounds and two assists by that point.

Kuminga ended up with 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting. He made his first six free throws before missing his last two. His seven rebounds were his most since missing more than two months to an ankle injury. The only downside to Kuminga’s night was when he banged knees in the fourth quarter with Yves Missi.

It’s the Pelicans, but this is the blueprint for Kuminga.

The Warriors watched 10 3-point attempts clank out before finally making one. They were 8 of 9 on 2-pointers in the first quarter, and 1 of 14 from 3-point range. Those numbers at halftime became 14 of 19 on twos (73.7 percent), and 6 of 28 on threes (21.4 percent).

Curry was 4 of 8 on threes in the first half, and the rest of the team combined to go 2 of 20.

Though they made two threes early into the third quarter, the Warriors entered the fourth quarter with a one-point lead while going 10 of 43 beyond the arc. Meanwhile, they had made 20 of their 26 2-point shots.

In the end, the Warriors finished the night going 13 of 55, making 23.6 percent of their 3-pointers. Curry, Post and Hield were the only Warriors to make multiple threes. The rest of the Warriors combined to go 3 of 24. To beat better teams going forward, the Warriors will have to find reliable shooters outside of Curry from long distance.

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What we learned as Warriors outlast Pelicans in Steph’s return

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