Warriors avenge loss to Timberwolves, get upper hand in rematch

Danny Emerman, The Mercury News on Dec 8, 2024

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SAN FRANCISCO — Having scored one point in five minutes, seeing an 11-point lead dissipate into a deficit, the Golden State Warriors went to a Steph Curry pick-and-roll on the wing with Jonathan Kuminga.

Kuminga slipped to the rim at an angle, catching a pocket pass off the bounce and elevating for a two-handed dunk.

The Warriors want to empower Kuminga more offensively, and they’re on the lookout for sets that work. Check and check.

Golden State nearly fell into the late-game rut that has plagued them recently, but instead leaned on their defense and manufactured just enough scoring to come back against Minnesota.

Gary Payton II picked off Anthony Edwards, igniting a transition break that ended with Buddy Hield’s seventh 3 of the game. Curry, who dished it to Hield in the corner, screamed in celebration with 56.8 seconds left.

That was the game-winner. For the exclamation point, Draymond Green threw down an emphatic dunk and borrowed Curry’s “Night-Night” celebration, hitting it several times in the game’s waning moments.

Golden State (14-9) held the Minnesota Timberwolves to 16 fourth-quarter points and limited Anthony Edwards to just three in the final quarter, pulling away for a 114-106 win. They overcame a hot shooting night from the Timberwolves by having three 20-point scorers in Curry (30 points), Hield (27) and Kuminga (20) for the first time this season.

Shortly after tipoff, Green played peacemaker after Edwards tossed down Jonathan Kuminga after a steal for a technical foul. For him to diffuse a situation against the Timberwolves — the opponent in which his season got derailed last year — showed a sign of progress.

As a team, though, the Warriors didn’t show much progress early on. They committed four turnovers in the first five minutes, including an errant inbounds pass under their own basket. Golden State shot 2 for 12 from 3 in the first quarter, falling behind 30-21.

Kuminga, in the starting lineup and playing in a more featured role, started 2 for 6. Several times, he tried Rudy Gobert on drives — a strategy that has rarely worked for anyone in the past decade.

Kuminga started 2 for 9 before hitting five of his last seven shots. If the Warriors are trying to pass the torch to him, he’ll have to take it.

Curry still needs a second scorer to either emerge or join the Warriors, but this is still his team. He erupted for 15 second-quarter points, including three tough 3-pointers, to keep the Warriors close.

Yet after Curry sank a 3 from the wing — freeing himself for a handoff from Draymond Green — the Timberwolves closed the half with back-to-back 3s in response. Golden State had momentum, but the Timberwolves snatched it back by finishing stronger.

Minnesota’s swarming, handsy defense that limited the Warriors to two separate quarters of 15 and 18 points on Friday night held Golden State to 37.5% shooting in the first half and forced nine turnovers.

The Warriors turned up the tempo in the third quarter, turning stops — and even quick inbounds passes — into fast-break scores. Gary Payton II leaked out for a pair of buckets then Buddy Hield sank his third triple of the game on a sneaky inbounds pass up the court off a dead ball.

The 11-3 burst from the Warriors brought them within three early in the third.

As the Warriors made their push, Minnesota kept sinking corner 3s. They calmly operated out of double teams, making the extra pass and hitting 15 of their first 30 triples.

Hield, who was mired in a month-long slump, tied the game with another 3. Later, he gave the Warriors their first lead since the first bucket of the game with a 3 after Kuminga dug out a steal against Edwards. Hield dropped 11 points in the third, rediscovering his jumper.

Curry finished an offensively abundant, 44-point Warriors third quarter with a rainbow 3 at the horn over Gobert. The Warriors shot 16 for 22 in the third.

Curry was playing with more burst than he has in recent weeks, and he was getting rewarded with the scoring help Golden State has been searching for during its skid.

Then the Warriors’ defense came around. Golden State smothered Minnesota to start the final quarter, holding the Wolves to one point in four minutes. Payton stripped Edwards and beat him down the court for an and-1, then Hield’s sixth 3 gave the Warriors an 11-point edge.

The Warriors brought Curry back for the last 5:31, putting him two minutes above the 32-minute mark they like to keep him at. Two days off after Sunday likely factored in as well as the desperation to return to winning ways.

Curry rejoined with a four-point lead. Last year’s Clutch Player of the Year wasn’t going to let another win slip away, even if he was willing to part with his patented celebration.

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