The Golden State Warriors lost again on the road, which was no surprise. They’ve been terrible on the road this year, and Friday faced the surging Philadelphia 76ers, led by Joel Embiid and James Harden … while missing their three All-Stars from a year ago, Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.
It ended up being an impressive effort from the Warriors JV team, but they ultimately lost 118-106. So let’s rate the good guys who put on the Dubs jerseys, keeping our expectations in mind. As always, a “B” rating represents the average performance we expect from a player.
Note: True Shot Percentage (TS) is an efficiency metric that takes into account three-point shots and free throws. The league average entering Friday’s games was 57.5%.
Jonathan Kuminga
29 mins, 7 points, 3 assists, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, shooting 3 for 8, 1 for 4 threes, 43.8% TS, -8
Kuminga is a player who is a better rebounder than the stats indicate, as he does a lot to keep balls alive and shut players out while his teammates catch the ball. But against Philly, he had a donut in the rebounding department, and it felt fitting. It is inexcusable.
He was also quite passive in attack. On the one hand, that’s understandable given that Joel Embiid is arguably the best defensive center in the NBA. On the other hand, Kuminga is an offensive passive when he is passive and settles for three.
I was impressed with his defense. The Warriors put it on James Harden, and while The Beard certainly ate, Kuminga made his life difficult, without fail.
Grade: C+
Kevon Looney
26 minutes, 14 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 3 fouls, shooting 6 for 8, free throws 2 for 2, 78.8% TS, -4
What an awesome Looney game. A missed jumper by Jordan Poole in the final minutes prevented Looney from having the first triple-double of his career, but that shouldn’t change our perception.
Looney has taken every opportunity possible this year to show people that he’s not just a system player who thrives when playing alongside Curry and Green. And he did all that against Joel Embiid!
What a stallion.
Rating: A+
Post-match bonus: Led the team in rebounds and assists.
Thompson clay
35 minutes, 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block, 4 turnovers, 3 fouls, 4 for 17 shooting, 3 for 8 3, 1 for 1 free throws, 34.4% TS, -9
If the Warriors are going to bank in any wins while Curry is sidelined, they need Klay to show up in a big way.
Unfortunately, Klay didn’t show up in great numbers on Friday.
Rating: D+
Post-match bonus: Tied for worst plus/minus of the team.
Do diVincenzo
35 minutes, 17 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 6 for 13 shots, 5 for 8 threes, 65.4% TS, -4
DiVincenzo set the tone for the Warriors early on, making five triples in the first quarter, including the first five he attempted. His scoring cooled considerably after that, but not his energy and impact on the game. He was flying all over the place in this game, which he’s been doing a lot lately.
He’s quickly becoming a Poole/GP2-esque player in that he’s good enough to start…which is a weapon when he comes off the bench, and a luxury when he’s forced into the starting lineup.
Rating: A
Jordan Poole
37 minutes, 29 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers, 2 fouls, 10 for 20 shots, 4 for 9 threes, 5 for 6 free throws, 64.1% TS, -9
I don’t think Poole’s assist numbers accurately describe the amount of work he’s done to set up teammates in this game. He controlled the offense for much of the game, keeping the engine purring, making his teammates look good, then, in the second half, punishing Philly’s defense with a barrage of rim attacks and three-point splashes. .
Very good game for JP.
Rating: A-
Post-match bonus: Led the team in points, tied for team worst plus/minus.
Green Ja Mychal
11 minutes, 1 point, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 0 for 2 shots, 0 for 2 threes, 1 for 2 free throws, 17.4% TS, -1
Green was still unlikely to play a huge role in this game due to the Embiid factor. But when he saw the pitch, he did a terrific job attacking the glass. He didn’t find his offense – 1 point and 3 turnovers is ugly – but his 8 rebounds in 11 minutes is ridiculous.
Category B
Anthony Lamb
19 minutes, 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 2 for 6 shots, 2 for 6 3, 50.0% TS, -6
One thing I’ll say about this week’s shows: Both Van Gundy brothers really love Lamb.
He was pretty mediocre in this game and was a little comfortable with a three-point shot that went down hard, but the smart coaches seem to like him.
Category B-
Patrick Baldwin Jr.
1 minute, 0 points, 0 plus/min
Just a tiny bit of foul weather for the tower.
Rating: Incomplete
Post-match bonus: Tied for team leader over/under.
James Wiseman
11 minutes, 6 points, 4 rebounds, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, shooting 3 for 5, 60.0% TS, -7
It’s pretty clear that Wiseman’s teammates aren’t used to playing with him. On only the second possession he was on the court for, after the Warriors stopped, Wiseman burst onto the court, beating everyone on the other side. Ty Jerome never looked up to see it, and Wiseman was unrewarded for his hustle. A few errant passes early on never made their way to the big man.
They later started to find the rhythm, which culminated in a bad alley-oop pass from DiVincenzo that Wiseman slammed.
There were good signs. Screens were faster and stronger. He had a blatant illegal display that reminded me of when I was in high school and someone advised me, “bounce more and more illegally until you get called for it, then you know where the remind.” I almost felt like Steve Kerr could have had Wiseman get an illegal screen for this reason.
His veteran teammates were thrilled for him. His defense looked better, although he was, predictably, well passed by Embiid.
Category B
Ty Jerome
19 minutes, 9 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 foul, shooting 4 for 10, 1 for 2 threes, 45.0% TS, -6
Another Van Gundy favorite. Jerome has struggled lately but looked good in this game. Not the most effective, and he missed a few open teammates, but he kept the offense moving.
Grade: B+
Moses Moody
16 mins, 3 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1-for-4 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 37.5% TS, -6
Not a bad game for Moody’s, but an utterly forgettable one. This seems to be the norm lately.
Grade: C+
ryan rollin
1 minute, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 block, 1 turnover, 0 for 1 shot, 2 for 2 free throws, 53.2% TS, 0 over/under
Just a few foul time possessions, but Rollins managed to put up a lot of different stats!
Rating: Incomplete
Friday inactives: Steph Curry, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, Andrew Wiggins
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