Not-A-Robot Draymond Lifts Warriors over Hawks in OT

As if the Atlanta Hawks weren’t enough trouble, the Golden State Warriors had to find a way to win without both Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala. Behind Draymond Green‘s near triple-double, the Warriors prevailed over the Hawks in overtime 109-105.

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With two of the Warriors’ leaders out of action tonight, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green had to show why they were both named All-Stars. Right out of the gate, the recently-crowned three-point champion went to work hitting consecutive shots from deep. On a drive, Green threw up a turnaround floater, looking for a foul, but it was wide left. Shaun Livingston, starting in place of Curry, rose up and threw down the slam.

Green led the way for Golden State early, scoring 7 points and pulling 2 rebounds. Thompson picked up two early fouls and Steve Kerr had to pull him. The Warriors won the quarter 32-26.

With a short bench, Kerr had to improvise, bringing in Ian Clark to run point in the second quarter. Leandro Barbosa provided a huge spark for Golden State when it struggled to find offense, scoring a quick 9 points off the bench. The Warriors couldn’t get any open looks so they turned to their defense and offensive rebounding to keep the Hawks in check.

James Michael McAdoo saw his first game action since December 31st, coming in right before the half. He looked a step slow and Green apparently let him know that. The Warriors had secured the final shot when Green drove and beat his man. When the help defense arrived, he found McAdoo waiting along the baseline who went up and couldn’t finish. After the buzzer ended, Green seemed displeased. The Warriors extended the lead to double digits, winning the quarter 27-22.

Thompson struggled from the field and, a few minutes into the third quarter, was one for his last nine attempts. Then he hit back-to-back threes and momentum looked like it started to build, but he still couldn’t get it going. Neither team could as it looked more like a Harlem Globetrotters game rather than an NBA game between playoff teams. The circus culminated with a Green three from the top of the key that hit the upper part of the backboard.

With time winding down, Green, the primary ball handler, drove on the left side of the court and tried to throw a lob to Marreese Speights. Speights couldn’t get a handle on it and tipped it to Barbosa in the corner behind him. The Brazilian guard pump faked, drove past his defender, and hit the midrange jumper at the buzzer. The Warriors couldn’t muster enough offense win the quarter, losing it 22-16.

The fourth quarter got off to a surprising start for Golden State as they looked poised to pull away. Speights hit consecutive three-pointers, electrifying Oracle Arena in the process. The Hawks outlasted the home team and crowd and Tim Hardaway Jr. hit a three followed by a two and tied the game up at 90 with 5 minutes left.

The Warriors’ All-Star power forward saved a basket and got a possession with an incredible steal. He chased down the Hawk and palmed the ball out of his hand, throwing it to a teammate as he fell out of bounds. The Hawks turned to Hack-a-Bogut, but Andreq Bogut hit 3 of 4 of his free throws. The Warriors couldn’t gain any separation and had a chance to win the game after Paul Milsap missed a wide open three that would have given them a late lead. Thompson drove and missed a fallaway jumper. Bogut grabbed the rebound, but couldn’t get a clean look as time expired.

Without two of their most important playmakers, the Warriors had to try to find a way to defeat the Hawks. Thompson, who struggled to shoot, came up big in overtime, getting to the line and hitting a timely three-pointer from the wing. Green sealed the deal fro Golden State, picking up a loose ball on a broken play and chucking up a three as the shot clock expired and splashed his first three since the opening period.

Green finished one assist shy of a triple-double, totaling 15 points, 13 rebounds, and 9 assists. Thompson scored 26 points on 8-27 shooting. Milsap lead the way with 19 points and 7 rebounds for Atlanta.

Tale of the Tape

Warriors

• Field-goal percentage: 39.4% (41-104)
• Three-point percentage: 33.3% (12-36)
• Rebounds: 52
• Assists: 27
• Turnovers: 17

Hawks

• Field-goal percentage: 46.3% (37-80)
• Three-point percentage: 36.4% (12-33)
• Rebounds: 42
• Assists: 25
• Turnovers: 11

Good to Know

What’s on Tap

The Warriors will take on Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in a highly anticipated rematch of Curry’s thrilling game-winning effort.