(Photo: LetsGoWarriors.com / Ryan Brown)
ORACLE ARENA, OAKLAND, CA — #DubNation breathed a sigh of relief as Andre Iguodala returned to the starting lineup for the Golden State Warriors and the Dubs blew out the New Orleans Pelicans, who were without two of their stars in Anthony Davis and Tyreke Evans, at #Roaracle.
The impact of Iguodala was felt once more, as the Warriors got an assist on 25 of their 41 made field goals. The 61% rate hovers near when Iguodala went down with a hamstring injury, at which point the Warriors had been at 62%. In his absence, the ratio had plummeted to the mid-50%’s.
Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle writes:
“He’s a guy who makes life so much easier for everybody on the floor, because of his ability to make plays and his ability to read and react,” head coach Mark Jackson said. “Then, there was a carry-over effect. Other guys began to read and react and make plays. …
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“He’s a special player. The things he does on the floor that don’t show up on the stat sheet are things we missed.”
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The Warriors (14-12) did not trail and led by as many as 26 points after going through an excruciating stretch without Iguodala. He strained his left hamstring in the third quarter of a game in Los Angeles against the Lakers on Nov. 22 and missed 24 days and 12 games as the Warriors went from 8-5 to 13-12.
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Without their do-it-all swingman in the lineup, the Warriors went from allowing 96.1 points per game to giving up 105.3. Their three-point defense was startlingly worse, and their ball movement and ball security on offense lapsed.
Stephen Curry dazzled again, including this “shake-and-bake” step-back three-pointer:
Carl Steward of the San Jose Mercury writes:
Indeed, it was a big night for a number of Warriors, most notably Stephen Curry, who recorded a league-best 11th straight game with 20 points or more by pouring in 28 and adding 12 assists. David Lee, meanwhile, was active at both ends, scoring 21 points with 17 rebounds.
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Everybody simply seemed buoyed by having Iguodala back on the floor.
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“We lost some games we should have won when he was out, and that helps you understand how important he is for our team,” Curry said. “We need to be healthy and have a solid roster that Coach can utilize night in and night out, and hopefully we can reach our full potential as a team.”
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Iguodala said he still has some limitations physically, primarily moving side to side while defending.
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“I was a little hesitant on the smaller guys,” he said. “I think I had two drive-bys that I can remember. So that’s something to work on. But we’ll be cautious.”
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Coach Mark Jackson tried to play Iguodala at approximate five-minute stints — 4:49 to start in the first quarter, the final 7:05 of the half, then another 5:29 in the third quarter. With the Warriors up by as many as 26 in the late third period, he sat out the fourth.
Monte Poole noted that Lee seemed to be back to his usual double-double ways:
“We knew this was a game we had to have,” power forward David Lee said. “We had a good practice (Monday) and we just tried to put the last few games behind us.”
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One of the things missing before Tuesday was consistent offense from someone other than Curry. He has been fabulous, on a roll of 11 consecutive games in which he has scored at least 20 points – the longest such streak in the league this season.
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Lee answered the call on Tuesday, with 21 points (on 10-of-15 shooting), adding 17 rebounds to lift the Warriors to 14-12 this season.
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THE GOOD: Lee played with a fire and determination rarely seen of late. Rather than settle for his suddenly inconsistent midrange jumper, he recognized a weak Pelicans interior defense – big man Anthony Davis was out with a fractured hand – and feasted.
Perhaps the only downside to the Warriors’ win was the play of their bench, with the exception of Marreese Speights, who per Sarah Todd of SFBay.ca:
Marreese Speights continued to step his game up, scoring four consecutive points including a driving slam dunk early in the second quarter to put the Warriors on top 30-23.
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Jackson said Speights has elevated his game and is playing the way the team needs him to:
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“He’s competing, he has a voice all of a sudden, and he’s locked in…really happen for him, he deserves this.”
The game was not as close as the 104-93 final indicated.
“I really believe there will be a point this year where our bench will propel us and win ballgames,” Jackson said, “They had an opportunity to play extended minutes and dropped the ball.”
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