The recently acquired Kristaps Porzingis has been hit by another injury concern, leaving the court in the first-half of the Golden State Warriors' 115-101 loss to the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena on Friday.
Porzingis was reaching for his back late in the second quarter, forcing him back to the locker room and out of the game after recording five points and three rebounds in 11 minutes.
Warriors fall flat after Kristaps Porzingis injury
Already without veteran stars Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler, the Warriors couldn't afford to also lose Porzingis against the NBA's second-best defense and top team in the Eastern Conference.
That proved exactly the case. Golden State started strongly and led by nine points four minutes into the second-quarter, but were completely outplayed from there onwards. The final 14 point margin might have actually looked better than it really was for the visitors, having trailed by 24 early in the fourth-quarter.
The Porzingis injury is just another rough blow for the Warriors, especially considering he was just starting to prove his worth after missing six-straight games due to a mysterious illness. The veteran center wasn't the only one to sustain an injury concern, with Gui Santos and Malevy Leons also dealing with minor issues.
Detroit's defense completely smothered Golden State, forcing them into 25 turnovers which led to a comfortable victory despite the absence of superstar guard Cade Cunningham. Without Porzingis in the second-half, on top of the absences of Al Horford and Quinten Post, the Warriors were hard-pressed to stop All-Star big man Jalen Duren who finished with a game-high 23 points.
Young guard Danniss Jenkins stepped into Cunningham's role with aplomb, recording 22 points, seven rebounds and eight assists, while Paul Reed had 15 points, six rebounds and three assists off the bench.
In contrast, Golden State once again had only one player reach 15 points, with Brandin Podziemski finishing with exactly 15, along with six rebounds and three assists, in just over 30 minutes. De'Anthony Melton had the team's first nine points in the opening period, yet finished with only 14 points 5-of-14 shooting.
Gui Santos continued his consistent two-month period, overcoming the early injury issue to have 13 points, five rebounds and five assists, while Gary Payton II also impressed again with 14 points off the bench.
The Warriors have lost seven of their past eight games and seem confined to the 10th-seed in the Western Conference, with Jonathan Kuminga and the Atlanta Hawks awaiting them on the second night of a back-to-back.