SAN FRANCISCO — The Chase Center crowd was ready to explode all night, with its team riding a hot start to the season to create an anticipated home opener.
Then it held its breath. Twice.
Late in the third quarter, star Steph Curry twisted his left ankle trying to maneuver his way through a screen. He limped to the bench, where he stretched out with an exercise band.
Curry returned with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter for his usual substitution pattern. But on the Warriors’ first possession, he again twisted the ankle and had to be helped to the trainer’s room.
“He’s doing okay,” Steve Kerr said postgame. “He used the word ‘mild’ or ‘moderate.’ He’s obviously sprained that ankle many times before, so he doesn’t think it’s too bad. But obviously, it’s a concern. Going to get an MRI tonight.”
As the 36-year-old stayed in the locker room for the remainder of the game with a sprained left ankle, his teammates valiantly shaved the Clippers’ double-digit lead but ultimately fell short in a 112-104 loss. Golden State (2-1) committed too many turnovers and surrendered too many second-chance points, which amounted to its first loss of the season.
Andrew Wiggins led the Warriors’ comeback bid by scoring 11 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, but the Clippers’ advantage in the possession game was too much to overcome. Los Angeles took 23 more field goal attempts than the Warriors through the first three quarters. In all, they hauled in 14 offensive rebounds and forced the Warriors into 20 turnovers.
“We’ve got to understand, most games are like this — they’re going to come down to a handful of possessions,” Kerr said. “And if you give 10 possessions away, it’s going to be really hard to win/”
The Warriors won their first two games of the season by an NBA-record margin of victory of 77, getting off to as magnificent a start as possible. They pushed the pace, clamped down on defense, played a 12-man rotation and rained 3s. Everybody ate, and the vibes, which started high in training camp in Hawaii, have been high.
But that was against Portland and Utah, expected lottery teams. On Sunday, they faced a fairer fight.
The Clippers, despite losing Paul George in free agency (after a brief, game-theorized dalliance with the Warriors) and having star Kawhi Leonard sidelined indefinitely, are in Golden State’s weight class. They’re deep, rangy, big and run through James Harden.
They made sure the Warriors’ home opener wasn’t like their first two games.
Golden State trailed almost the entire game. Buddy Hield, who led the Warriors in scoring in their first two games, struggled to create separation against the Clippers’ stockpile of rangy wings.
Ivica Zubac (23 points, 17 rebounds) and Derrick Jones Jr. especially gave the Warriors issues. Jones drilled a pair of 3s and finished fast breaks, while Zubac was a handful on the glass. At halftime, the Clippers center had 13 points and 10 rebounds, consistently creating extra possessions with tip-outs.
Los Angeles held the Warriors scoreless for the first four minutes of the second quarter, and eventually sent Golden State to its locker room at halftime down 59-54. The Clippers took nine more field goal attempts than the Warriors, handily winning the possession battle because of their work on the boards and Golden State’s 12 first-half turnovers.
The Warriors opened the second half with a trio of turnovers, inspiring Steve Kerr to call a timeout less than two minutes into the third quarter.
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Curry (18 points, six assists in 27 minutes) flashed moments of brilliance, like when he tipped the ball to himself, went behind the back to leave Norman Powell in the dust and finished at the rim. But he committed six turnovers, setting a subpar standard for valuing the ball.
The Clippers always had counterpunches to Golden State’s pushes. They’d got on mini-runs, only for Jones to hit a corner 3 or Powell to work his way to the basket. The Warriors walled off Harden (23 points on 6-for-19 shooting) well, especially in isolation, but the Clippers’ secondary pieces were effective.
With 2:43 left in the third quarter, Curry limped off the court after tweaking his left ankle. He sat on the bench, using an exercise band to stretch as his team played on, trying to cut into Los Angeles’ lead.
Curry checked back in with 8:08 in the fourth quarter, with his team trailing 95-85. But seconds later, he re-twisted his ankle while trying to set a pick.
When Curry left, the Warriors trailed by 10. A Kevon Looney steal-and-score cut the lead to 101-95 with five minutes left. Looney scored through contact at the rim a minute later to inch Golden State closer. Then he forced a backcourt violation by denying Zubac an inbounds pass.
Wiggins drained a 3, making it 101-100, but that was the closest they’d get. Draymond Green, who struggled, sat for the last eight minutes of the game as Kerr went with combinations that were producing.
The Warriors believe their depth of 13 NBA-caliber players will help them withstand the natural bumps and bruises of a long season. But losing Curry would be different.
“I don’t know,” Kerr said when asked who might have to pick up slack if Curry misses time. “We’ll see. Wiggs is off to a great start, and he had a big night tonight. He’s an obvious candidate to get the ball to more. We’ve got a deep team, we’ve got a lot of guys who can play.”
