Golden State Warriors’ big three refuse to lie down and call it a day

The Golden State Warriors faced the prospect of an 0-2 deficit with a loss on Thursday, but the defending champions put paid to the idea with a dominant performance in Game 2 against the Los Angeles Lakers.

As resilient as the Warriors have been over the last decade, dropping both games at Chase Center may as well have been curtains on their up-and-down season. Instead, Golden State heads to Crypto.com Arena with a rush of momentum after a comfortable 127-100 victory.

As shown again on Thursday in Game 2, the Golden State Warriors’ big three refuse to lie down and put an end to their dynastic era.

It was a team performance from the Warriors who dished out 38 assists and made 21 of their 42 attempts from three-point range. They also did a number on Anthony Davis, with the Lakers’ star limited to just 11 points after a 30-point, 23-rebound display in Game 1.

But for all the solid contributions that Golden State had on Thursday, it was again their core three that led the way. Although their period in the sunlight will inevitably come to an end, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green remained as determined as ever to prong that for as long as possible.

The Warriors already faced elimination in the first-round of the postseason, with Curry’s 50-point masterpiece ensuring his team pushed past the Kings in Game 7. Down seven after the opening period of Game 2 against the Lakers, Golden State were in another precarious position.

On this occasion it was Thompson who led the turning momentum, scoring 14 second-quarter points to aid the Warriors in winning the period 41-23. He added another 11 in the third as the hosts quickly shifted from a tricky situation to a blowout win.

Thompson finished with 30 points on 11-for-18 from the field and 8-for-11 from deep, but many of his looks came simply from the gravitational pull of Curry who manipulated the Laker defense with expertize. It was a relatively quiet scoring game for the two-time MVP, and even his 12-assist performance probably doesn’t do justice to his impact on the game.

Then there was Green, the former Defensive Player of the Year who dealt with Davis after many questioned his capacity to do so following Game 1. Davis’ mental focus is one thing, and so too is Golden State’s team defense on him, but neither of those can take away from Green’s individual brilliance defensively.

On the offensive end he was more aggressive early on, making Davis feel a little more accountable having been a dominant interior presence on Tuesday night. Green finished with 11 points and nine assists in another versatile, two-way masterclass.

This is exactly why many are simply refusing to count out the Warriors’ championship hopes, because Curry, Thompson and Green have a detailed history of showing up when it matters most. They may eventually fall against the Lakers or another rival, but it won’t happen without significant resistance from the four-time championship-winning trio.