Jordan Poole explodes as Warriors find effective combinations in blowout win

The Golden State Warriors looked much more like their usual self on Monday night, bouncing back from Sunday’s loss to the Sacramento Kings with a dominant blowout win over the San Antonio Spurs.

Starting in place of a resting Klay Thompson, Jordan Poole led a polished offensive display as the Warriors racked up 132 points. It was their defense though that would have had Steve Kerr most jubilant, limiting the Spurs to just 36% shooting and 95 points overall.

Jordan Poole had a night out as the Golden State Warriors found a much needed confidence boost in 37-point win against the San Antonio Spurs.

Poole came out firing from the tip, draining 14 first-quarter points on 5-for-6 shooting. It was prime Poole offense, mixing a couple of threes with some beautiful moves towards the rim.

More importantly, in a rare statement this season, the Warriors bench steadied the ship after the Spurs went on a 16-5 run midway through the opening period. JaMychal Green and Moses Moody were the first players off the bench, signalling another rotation change from Kerr.

Both Green and Moody hit triples in the first-quarter, as did Jonathan Kuminga as the Warriors closed with a seven-point lead. That extended to the second as Kuminga provided perhaps him most impressive stretch of the season — the decision making and read-and-react style was evident, giving optimism that he may be starting to grasp the Warriors system.

A relatively quiet Stephen Curry finished the half with a deep three-pointer, putting the finishing touch on an efficient 61-point first half. On the other end, suffocating and energised Warrior defense kept the Spurs to 45 points.

The opening of the third was Warriors basketball at its best — disruptive defense led to a number of transition baskets as Curry and Poole had a field day. A 13-0 run blew the lead out to 29 which put an end to any doubt about the result.

The rest of the night was about how many Poole could end up with, and what the Warriors young players could provide. A four-point play helped lift Poole to 36 on the night, shooting a highly efficient 13-for-20 and 5-for-10 from three-point range. As eye-catching as his offense was, his engaged and active defense was just as noteworthy.

Donte DiVincenzo was assessed a flagrant two foul which saw him ejected early in the fourth, but that wasn’t going to ruin what was the Warriors best two-way performance of the season. Anthony Lamb had some fun late as he finished 5-for-6 on threes, while Kuminga finished with 15 and Moody 11 in impressive outings from last year’s lottery picks.

Golden State shot 54% from the field including a staggering 51.1% on 45 three-point attempts. Sure, the Spurs might be a rebuilding, below average team, but this was pure Warriors basketball where the ball was popping and everyone fed as a result.

The Warriors move to a 6-8 record on the season, with an important clash against the Phoenix Suns coming up on Wednesday at Footprint Center.