The Golden State Warriors found out fast how thin the margin gets when Stephen Curry is out of the lineup.
Without their star guard, Golden State was overwhelmed by the San Antonio Spurs on Friday in NBA Cup play, dropping a 123-85 decision at Frost Bank Center. The loss wasn’t just lopsided - it was a full-on collapse, with San Antonio opening by burying the Warriors 38-14 in the first quarter and never letting the game get close.
Yaxel Lendeborg, who had been riding a strong stretch, ran straight into the grind of being asked to carry more of the load. He finished with three points on 1-of-13 shooting in 24 minutes, adding seven rebounds and three turnovers. Before the game, he had embraced the idea of taking on more responsibility with Curry sidelined for at least two weeks because of an oblique injury.
“I got to be a lot, lot, lot more aggressive. Definitely have to be more in the score-first mindset now.
My mindset so far has been, like, ‘Support Steph.’ This is more supporting Steph than ever, but just more aggressively,” said the outspoken rookie.
“Some can say first option. I don’t know.
We’ll see how it goes. I know me and (Brandin Podziemski) are gonna do a lot of extra scoring now.”
That plan hit a wall against Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs. Golden State didn’t get a starter into double figures, and the offense leaned heavily on the bench just to find any traction. LJ Cryer led the Warriors with 20 points and six made threes, while Charles Bassey was the only other Golden State player to reach double digits with 11.
The game also turned physical in the second quarter, when Draymond Green was assessed a flagrant 1 foul for pushing Wembanyama from behind.
By the end, the numbers told the story: the Warriors shot 33% from the field, were beaten on the boards 60-43, and gave up 15 points off 14 turnovers. Golden State fell to 8-5.
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