The shorthanded Warriors were dominated by the Lakers on Saturday evening.
The Golden State Warriors were searching for a major win on Saturday evening when the Los Angeles Lakers came to town. With just 3.5 games separating the two teams in the standings, there was a real opportunity for the Warriors to make progress in creeping closer to that coveted 6th seed.
Alas, the injury report might have doomed the Warriors before the ball even tipped off. Without Steph Curry and Kristaps Porzingis, the Warriors looked as they presented on paper: star-less and without a major offensive engine.
Starting in the first quarter and continuing for the rest of the 48 minutes, the Lakers simply dominated all facets of the game and handed the Warriors a demoralizing 129-101 loss.
Steve Kerr Admits Warriors Were Outplayed From The Start
After the game, Steve Kerr did not hold back from telling the truth about what happened in the blowout loss.
"I thought (the Lakers) were great. They played a fantastic game. They came in here having lost three straight, they were locked in. I thought getting off to the slow start hurt us, because for us to win right now, it has to be about energy, winning extra possessions, crashing, forcing turnovers, and we just fell behind like that. They were playing with the lead the entire game and we just couldn't climb back in."
The first quarter ended with the Lakers already 33-20 after the Warriors couldn't seem to throw the ball into the San Francisco Bay in the opening minutes. The Warriors didn't score more than 30 points in a single quarter the rest of the way.
Warriors' Starters Were Thoroughly Outmatched
In a 29-point loss, it's expected that there will be some ugly plus/minus numbers, but the entire starting lineup ended up catching the heat on Saturday.
Draymond Green led the way with a staggering -30, while both De'Anthony Melton and Moses Moody were -25. Gui Santos was -22, and Brandin Podziemski rounded out the starting five as a -20. Considering how well Melton, Moody, and Santos, in particular, have been playing all-around, it's surprising to see how poorly their lineup was beaten.
The bench, on the other hand, was largely fine, as the worst number was just Will Richard at -9, though he only played 5 minutes due to an ankle injury he suffered in the second quarter.
Ultimately, the Warriors just couldn't handle the Lakers' Big Three, as Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves combined to score 66 points on 23-41 shooting.
It's ultimately a game to forget for the Warriors as they'll take Sunday to rest before welcoming the other Los Angeles team, the Clippers, on Monday night at Chase Center.