Golden State Warriors look to push Pelicans series to 3-1

After a troublesome Game 3, the Golden State Warriors will look to bounce back against the New Orleans Pelicans in Game 4 on Sunday.

The Golden State Warriors looked completely out of it last Friday at the Smoothie King Center, losing 119-100 to the New Orleans Pelicans in Game 3. Hopefully things will go differently Sunday afternoon when the Dubs return to Smoothie King for Game 4.

Since dominating Game 1, the Warriors just haven’t looked as focused or engaged. While they were perfectly able to pick up a win in Game 2, Golden State took quite some time to finally lock in, only doing so after a much needed lift from The Chef off the bench.

In Game 3, the Dubs committed a number of costly turnovers and failed to find a rhythm on the offensive end, leading to a blowout win for their opponents. They may not be known as the “Sharks,” but there’s no doubt New Orleans smells blood in the water.

If the Warriors are going to have any chance of coming out of Game 4 with their lead over the series intact, they’ll have to put their foot down and get the work done early to avoid fighting another uphill battle.

Game Details

Golden State Warriors at New Orleans Pelicans

Tip-Off: Sunday, May 6, 2018 at 12:30 p.m. PDT

Location: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, LA

TV: ABC

Radio: 95.7 The Game, Warriors Radio Network

Projected Starting Lineups

New Orleans Pelicans

PG: Rajon Rondo

SG: Jrue Holiday

SF: E’Twaun Moore

PF: Nikola Mirotic

C: Anthony Davis

Head Coach: Alvin Gentry

Golden State Warriors

PG: Stephen Curry

SG: Klay Thompson

SF: Andre Iguodala

PF: Kevin Durant

C: Draymond Green

Head Coach: Steve Kerr

Injury Report

GSW: Patrick McCaw (lumbar spine contusion) is listed out.

NOP: Alexis Ajinca (right knee injury), DeMarcus Cousins (left achilles rupture) and Frank Jackson (right foot fracture) are out.

Keys to the Game

I absolutely hate seeing the Warriors get off to a slow start. Since March, it seems as if every game they start a step slow ends up in a loss, so it’s perplexing to see them continually go through the motions in the first quarter when we know they can play so much better.

You could argue that Golden State simply doesn’t feel challenged enough yet to actually get into gear right off the bat, but an off-start for the Warriors only seems to motivate opponents that much more.

By the time the Warriors decide it’s time to flip the switch, it ends up being far too late. I’m not at all saying the Dubs have taken a large step back; I’m saying teams have improved enough to the point the Warriors can no longer just rely on their shooters to easily cover a 20-point deficit late in the game.

When coupled with Golden State’s expected plethora of turnovers and their recently questionable defensive structure, a slow start only ever results in an long, unnecessary struggle. The Warriors need to put the pedal to the metal right out the gates in Game 4 to keep the Pelicans from developing any sort of rhythm.

Next: Takeaways from GSW's Game 3 Loss to Pelicans

(All game information provided via Warriors PR)