Golden State Warriors embarrassed in 38-point blowout loss to New York Knicks

Stephen Curry might be the most notable absentee from the Golden State Warriors right now, but it was arguably Andrew Wiggins and Donte DiVincenzo who the team missed most in a blowout 132-94 loss to the New York Knicks on Tuesday.

DiVincenzo was ruled out with a non-covid illness hours before the game, and so too was JaMychal Green who’s entered health and safety protocols. It provided extra opportunities for the Warriors youngsters, including Moses Moody who got the start in place of DiVincenzo.

The Knicks entered the game with a league-average offense, ranked 13th, but they were made to look like the best as the Warriors offered little resistance on the perimeter or at the rim.

The Golden State Warriors were well and truly embarrassed in a 38-point demolition at the hands of the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

The Warriors opened with a lid on the basket, failing to score for the opening three minutes as the Knicks jumped out to an 8-0 start. Golden State arrested the momentum but struggled for offensive production, outside Jordan Poole, for large parts of the opening period.

The fourth-year guard had 12 of the Warriors’ 25 points in the first 12 minutes as the Knicks took a 33-25 lead. Both teams then came out firing from beyond the arc early in the second, and the Warriors did cut it to four with eight minutes left in the half.

From there New York would finish the first 24 minutes on a 24-15 run, much of it predicated on their lights out shooting as they went 11-for-23 (47.8%) from three-point range. It also didn’t help that the Knicks had five more offensive rebounds and the Warriors had two more turnovers. The primary culprit of that was Klay Thompson who had an ice cold first-half – seven points, 1-for-5 from three with five turnovers.

Golden State had a couple of stronger defensive possessions to start the third, but that’s as good as they gave as New York blew the game out of the water as they extended the lead past 20. Steve Kerr appeared to throw the towel in early when Moses Moody, Jonathan Kuminga and James Wiseman saw the floor together late in the third.

The fourth-quarter was all about what the younger players could produce, but even that offered little optimism as New York continued to run up the score. Jonathan Kuminga had 13 points, four rebounds and four assists, continuing to look far more advanced than Wiseman, Moody or either of the rookies in Ryan Rollins and Patrick Baldwin Jr.

New York would shoot 51.7% from the field and 42.5% from three, tallying up ten more offensive rebounds and eight less turnovers in numbers that are always going to prove a one-sided contest. Poole had 26 points in 29 minutes for Golden State, but no other way player would score more than 13.

Perhaps the only salvageable aspect was that Poole, Thompson, Draymond Green and Kevon Looney each played less than 30 minutes on the first night of a back-to-back. However, you’d still expect Thompson to join Curry, Wiggins and JaMychal Green on the sidelines for Wednesday’s game in Brooklyn, with DiVincenzo’s status uncertain.