Brandin Podziemski is trying to shape his game around a familiar blueprint, and it showed in the Warriors’ 119-114 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The third-year guard said he spent the offseason studying New York Knicks All-Star Jalen Brunson, looking closely at how Brunson creates offense and gets to the line. Podziemski missed Golden State’s regular-season opener because of a back injury, but in his first stretch back he’s been working to find his rhythm as the Warriors settle into the season.
“Watching film. I watched a lot of Brunson tape this summer, understanding that guys who make jumps in this league shoot a lot more threes, a lot more free throws.
And the back half of last season, that's what I did, and I'm just trying to continue that,” Podziemski said. “I know our team notoriously doesn't get fouled a lot, and shoot a lot of free throws.
So, for me, if I'm able to do that, reset a possession, and slow the game down a little bit, get the legs back under us; that's what we need.”
Against Minnesota on Wednesday, Podziemski logged eight points, six assists and five rebounds in his second game of the regular season. He shot 2-for-5 from the field and went 4-for-7 at the free-throw line.
That free-throw volume stood out on a night when Stephen Curry was the one carrying the scoring load. Curry poured in a game-high 44 points and added eight rebounds, six assists and two steals, while also going a perfect 16-for-16 from the stripe.
With their first two wins of the season now in the books, the Warriors will try to make it three straight when they host the Los Angeles Lakers in their first NBA Cup matchup on Friday.
In Other News...
Mavericks Just Got Linked To A Trade Idea Fans Will Debate
The Warriors search for help in the middle has been a constant subplot, and one speculative path that has surfaced would send Daniel Gafford from Dallas to the Bay in a package built around Moses Moody, Gui Santos and a 2028 first-round pick. It is the kind of idea that immediately invites debate because it speaks to two things Golden State has been chasing for a while: more size up front and a clearer answer at center without emptying the cupboard too aggressively.
From the Mavericks side, the appeal would come down to what Moody can become when healthy and available, since his injury status is part of the conversation, along with the kind of perimeter profile he brings. For the Warriors, the question is whether giving up a young wing, a developmental piece and a future first is worth the chance to solve a glaring roster need, especially with the deal still only living in the speculative stage. [Read more 🡒]
Jonathan Kuminga Is Reviving An Uncomfortable Warriors Debate
Jonathan Kumingas first season away from Golden State has done more than change his scenery. It has also sharpened the case for what kind of player he can be when the environment around him is built to highlight his strengths. Since moving on to the Hawks and then the Timberwolves, his offensive production has stayed fairly steady, but the defensive numbers around him have trended upward, and the broader picture has become harder for the Warriors to ignore.
Minnesota has given Kuminga a much different support system, one that includes strong rim protection and elite point-of-attack defense, and that context matters when evaluating his growth. It also feeds back into an old question Golden State never fully settled: whether Kuminga is best used as a wing, a forward, or in some role that asks less of him defensively and lets his athletic tools play up. The answer may not be simple, but his new stops have made the debate look a lot less theoretical. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Suddenly Face A Serious Kristaps Porzingis Contract Question
Kristaps Porzingis has yet to play for the Warriors this season because of a private health issue tied to an upper respiratory viral illness, and the teams latest roster paperwork has made the situation feel a lot more significant. His official designation changed from general illness to not with team, a shift that brings more than just medical concern into the picture and raises a fresh layer of uncertainty around one of the rosters most unusual absences.
For Golden State, the key issue now is less about when Porzingis might return and more about what the team can do if the situation keeps dragging on. The status change opens the door to a possible contract question if he is eventually viewed as unwilling to render services, but actually voiding the deal would be anything but simple. Unless Porzingis were to retire and give back the money, the process would be tangled, and the Warriors may be staring at a problem with no easy resolution. [Read more 🡒]