If there is one team that has proven to be a serious challenge out in the West for the Golden State Warriors thus far, it has been the Los Angeles Clippers.
After giving them a run for their money in the first game back on Nov. 4 (final score of 112-108), the Clippers went up by as much as 23 points against the Warriors in the early going in their second meeting on Thursday. For the second straight time, Chris Paul managed to put Stephen Curry in early foul trouble and had a whale of a game with 35 points on 13-of-22 shooting with four rebounds, eight assists and three steals despite initially being listed as doubtful. Draymond Green, arguably as important as Curry for the Warriors in terms of the impact he makes on the defensive end (his impact offensively also cannot be overlooked but that’s a story for another day), also got in early foul trouble, putting the Warriors’ 12-game winning streak in serious jeopardy.
With Curry and Green out of the lineup early and often, the Warriors dealt with a double-digit deficit for much of the game. When crunch time came in the fourth quarter, however, the Warriors went to their all-dependable small-ball lineup of Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Harrison Barnes and Green. From there, Golden State outscored the Clippers 25-8, turning the game from a nail-biter to a no-doubter for the 124-117 victory and their 13th straight victory – the 5th best start in NBA history and the best start for a championship team since 1957-58 Boston Celtics.
The battle between Curry and Paul was pretty epic, as seen below:
Curry struggled to control the ball and had seven turnovers, but was his usual Herculean self with 40 points on 11-of-22 shooting, a game-high 11 rebounds, four assists and three steals.
There were plenty of other contributions from the rest of the team. Green had 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting, six rebounds and nine assists, Thompson had 25 points and Barnes chipped in 21 points and seven rebounds. Iguodala made one timely play after another when it mattered the most and provided some comic relief along the way.
With the incredible game on display, plenty around the league had some powerful things to say about Curry and the Warriors. The best one yet may be this one from Warriors sideline reporter Rosalyn Gold-Onwude, who promised to do something that is relatively bold:
Ok, I’m not shaving my legs until the Warriors lose… ???? lol
— Rosalyn Gold-Onwude (@ROSGO21) November 20, 2015
@ROSGO21 @ThompsonScribe be careful now!#usecautionyoungstar
— Doris Burke (@heydb) November 20, 2015
Whether she actually plans on going ahead with this plan remains to be seen. Here are some other reactions from the NBA family:
Unbelievable group of Guys!! Way up, I feel blessed!!! #Warriorsss #13 pic.twitter.com/xP41jiKatf
— Leandro Barbosa (@TheBlurBarbosa) November 20, 2015
Can’t say enough to about this squad!! Resilient to the end ????! Back at it tomorrow night. #DubNation gonna need you at Oracle loud. ✈️✈️✈️✈️
— Stephen Curry (@StephenCurry30) November 20, 2015
Sleep if you want ugh !!! pic.twitter.com/28Ng0cGmLl
— Marreese Speights (@Mospeights16) November 20, 2015
Oh dang that sucks!!! 13-0 great night RT @ByAnyMeansMo: @Mospeights16 @Bluxters u suck my nigga. You missed like 10 straight shots
— Marreese Speights (@Mospeights16) November 20, 2015
13-0 ! Love this team…. @StephenCurry30 is another level!!!!! #godubs
— Andrew Bogut (@andrewbogut) November 20, 2015
Leaving Warriors at Clips. The GSW are not playing games with the league.
— Jalen Rose (@JalenRose) November 20, 2015
I need to know what it is that make LAC freeze up like this every time?
— Jordan Crawford (@jcraw55) November 20, 2015
From a Fan perspective… Steph is doing something Special right now!! Crazy
— Lou Williams (@TeamLou23) November 20, 2015
WOW‼great win for Dubs on the road‼️ Such poise after Clips hot 1st Q. Steph playing like MVP he was last season.@warriors @StephenCurry30
— Rick Barry (@Rick24Barry) November 20, 2015
Tweet I never expected to type in my life – Luke Walton totally out coached Doc Rivers.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) November 20, 2015
I don’t know whether the story is GSW fighting back like champs or the Clips caving yet again or the inevitability of both happening.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) November 20, 2015
Man the Warriors is a great team they play very well together
— Kenny Anderson (@chibbs_1) November 20, 2015
.@warriors showing why they’re the champs. 13-0. @StephenCurry30 & Co. playing with a lot of heart. Quite a start to this season.
— Scottie Pippen (@ScottiePippen) November 20, 2015
Most underrated part of Steph this season is the fresh cut.. Lol
— Spencer Dinwiddie (@SDinwiddie_25) November 20, 2015
After? ???? https://t.co/ZOurV8iVIG
— Jordan Crawford (@jcraw55) November 20, 2015
Unbelievable game!! #WarriorsClippers
— shabazz muhammad (@ShabazzMuhammad) November 20, 2015
Wow what a game
— Myles Turner (@Original_Turner) November 20, 2015
Please trainers don’t try to teach what Steph Curry does it’s an art not a skill.Don’t try to make videos it’s all a feel. Can’t teach feel
— Coach John Lucas (@CoachJohnLucas1) November 20, 2015
Best NBA Player @StephenCurry30 He’s unstoppable
— TJ Ford (@tj_ford) November 20, 2015
What a fun game to watch !!! #WarriorsClippers
— Ricky Rubio (@rickyrubio9) November 20, 2015
If GS wins this they gonna feel even more invincible..
— Spencer Dinwiddie (@SDinwiddie_25) November 20, 2015
So much fun to watch the back and forth between @StephenCurry30 and @CP3. Going to be a great last few minutes of this one.
— Scottie Pippen (@ScottiePippen) November 20, 2015
Buddy is 5-12 from three and it seem like an off night ???? sick standards
— CJ McCollum (@CJMcCollum) November 20, 2015
Jim Park is a blogger and Tweet of the Night author of Sheridan Hoops. Follow him on twitter @SheridanBlog.