The Golden State Warriors were unprepared to play against the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night and got blown out as a result.
The Warriors lost the game 133-103, but things got embarrassing early. Dallas went on a 28-0 run for most of the first quarter and part of the second. The run marked the longest scoring drought in an NBA game since 2009.
Via @EliasSports: "The Warriors went 9 minutes and 38 seconds without scoring, the longest scoring drought in a game since December 6, 2009 when the Bucks went 11:25 without scoring a point against the Cavaliers."
Wow.
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) April 28, 2021
The Warriors trailed by 33 at the half and as many as 43 in the game.
Steph Curry, who has been hot all month, said his team “dropped the ball.”
Stephen Curry: "It just stings getting blown out. We know the context of the season. … We dropped the ball, didn't play well, didn't really have any life that first quarter. It's a tough one."
— Connor Letourneau (@Con_Chron) April 28, 2021
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr acknowledged he didn’t have his team ready and said it was “very disappointing.”
Steve Kerr: "I'm the head coach, and I didn't have them ready to play, clearly. … Biggest game of the year. … They came out like it was a playoff game, and we came out like it was an exhibition game. Very disappointing."
— Connor Letourneau (@Con_Chron) April 28, 2021
Mychal Mulder, who scored 26 points, said that it felt like there was a lid on the basket during the stretch where they couldn’t score.
Mychal Mulder on the Mavericks' 28-0 run in the first half: "It kind of felt like there was a lid on the basket, and it also felt like they were making everything. … That's our fault for not opening with intensity."
— Connor Letourneau (@Con_Chron) April 28, 2021
That sounds about right.
The game was a big one because of each team’s place in the standings. The top six teams in each conference are in the playoffs, while teams 7-10 need to participate in a play-in tournament. The Warriors are on the edge of making the playoffs as the No. 10 team, while the Mavs are in the six spot. Golden State was in striking distance of Dallas and held a tiebreaker against them. Thanks to their win, Dallas now has the tiebreaker.
Curry believes he should be NBA MVP this season. He’s made a strong case recently, but he definitely didn’t this time.
