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Warriors re-establish home-court advantage in dominant homestand, setting foundation for tougher road ahead

Published

2 years ago

November 13, 2021

SAN FRANCISCO — Steph Curry in MVP form. Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala throwing down breakaway dunks. Devastating third-quarter runs that debilitate the opponent while driving the Bay Area fans into a frenzy. If you squint with a reasonable amount of force, you might just mistake this season’s version of the Golden State Warriors for the 2014-15 bunch that announced themselves to the basketball world with an NBA title.

But no matter how raucous the Chase Center crowd gets and how fun the atmosphere becomes, make sure you keep the Oracle Arena comparisons out of your mouth.

“It’s an unfair comparison to Oracle, honestly,” Curry said earlier this week. “We’re trying to put ourselves in position where we’re winning games, protecting home court, where we can develop a new identity of what this building means in terms of home-court advantage. We had three championships in that building. We want to try to get one in here, but it’s a work in progress.”

Similarities between this year’s Warriors and the championship dynasty aside, there is a distinct cohesiveness and confidence to this group that began in training camp and has carried all the way through their league-best 11-1 start. Friday’s matchup with the Bulls was supposed to be a test — a barometer against one of the NBA’s best after a cupcake schedule. Sure, the Bulls were without All-Star center Nikola Vucevic, but they were methodically transmuted into delectables during a thorough 119-93 Golden State victory, in which they blitzed Chicago to grow their six-point halftime lead to a laughable 24 at the conclusion of the third quarter.

Just like the good old days.

Considered one of the biggest mysteries heading into the NBA season due to the uncertain status of Klay Thompson, the Warriors couldn’t have asked for a better start. In addition to their near-flawless record, they have the league’s best defense, the second-best offense and their net rating is nearly double the closest competitor.

There’s just one caveat that may prevent folks from assuredly announcing that Golden State is once again a certified title contender: that darn schedule.

Only the first two wins of the season, over the Lakers and the Clippers, have come against teams with better than a .500 record. The Warriors were also the beneficiaries of a virtually unprecedented eight-game homestand, tying the longest such stretch in franchise history. They went 7-1 in the friendly confines of Chase Center, losing only to the Memphis Grizzlies in overtime, with all of the wins coming by double-digits. So the leeriness of Golden State’s early success is certainly justified.

“I don’t think anybody’s getting too cocky. We’re aware the schedule’s been kind to us to this point,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said earlier in the week. “We know it’s gonna get a lot tougher. The veterans who’ve been around know that there’s turbulence coming. There always is in an NBA season at some point. We’ll be prepared for that when it comes. But you just ride the wave while you’re on it and then you move on accordingly depending on what happens next.”

What happens next is six of nine games on the road, including matchups against the Brooklyn Nets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Clippers and Phoenix Suns, who had a combined record of 40-21 following Friday night’s results. Kerr thinks this is a good time for his team to hit the road, where plane flights and hotel stays help build chemistry, but the degree of difficulty is undoubtedly going to be ratcheted up a notch.

Having welcomed unfamiliar veteran faces like Otto Porter Jr. and Nemanja Bjelica, along with lottery picks Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, it was a blessing for the Warriors to open the season with this favorable stretch. The schedule will even out over the course of the year, but the ability for the team to build wins, confidence and chemistry this early in the season could pay dividends down the road.

“I think with this team it was favorable to play all these home games and get off to a quick start out of the gates, and build some confidence, build some rhythm,” Kerr said after Friday’s win. “We’ve kind of found some rotation patterns that we like. With some new guys, it was definitely helpful to have the homestand to start out.”

Another added benefit to the homestand that Kerr noted is the fact that the team and Chase Center started crafting their identities. It’s never going to be Oracle, but the energy and vivacity coming from the stands is significant, more than it has been since the franchise moved back to San Francisco before the 2019-20 season. In addition to Curry consistently bombing 3s, it’s helped that the Warriors have suddenly turned into a SlamBall team, throwing down highlight dunks left and right, with 6-foot-3 Gary Payton II the primary showman.

The Warriors had a 173-32 regular-season record at home, 45-11 in the playoffs, from 2014 to 2019, and hope that Chase can eventually begin to resemble peak Oracle. But as they pack their bags for the upcoming four-game road trip, they know things are about to change. Even against lesser opponents, games in other teams’ arenas are a different beast. The Warriors have veterans who aren’t likely to get fazed, but it will be the first test for this group as a whole after dominating its favorable early schedule.

“Hopefully we can pack that momentum with us on the way, but it all comes down to just how we execute and getting the effort and energy that you bring,” Curry said after Friday’s win. “It’s easy to get up when you have your home crowd rooting you on and you have that energy, but on the road it requires another level of focus and intensity to win games. We know how to do it — it’s just a matter of showing up — so we’ve got to carry that as much as possible.”

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Fans React To Latest Picture Of Kawhi Leonard In The Gym

Published

3 mins ago

September 26, 2023

nigemord@gmail.com

(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

According to all accounts, Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers is a friendly guy.

He just doesn’t smile that much.

Therefore, any image of him looking joyful is celebrated and shared by NBA fans.

And any image of him looking happy and healthy is celebrated even more.

According to ClutchPoints, the Clippers posted a picture of Leonard putting up shots at the team’s practice facility, with a pretty big smile on his face.

Fans of the team were elated to see him in such good spirits.

Kawhi Leonard is all smiles at the Clippers practice facility
(via @LAClippers) pic.twitter.com/xPnXGi4eVH
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— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 25, 2023

The responses to this picture were mostly ones of happiness and even a bit of shock.

“Someone frame this ultra rare card,” one user said.

Someone frame this ultra rare card.
— John Kim (@JohnKim_24) September 26, 2023

Others were just happy to see Leonard healthy again.

He played 52 games last season and was only able to participate in two postseason games because of yet another injury that sidelined him.

Fans are very hopeful that he will remain healthy all season long in 2023-24.

welcome back king!
— imghut (@imgrpost) September 25, 2023

Some people aren’t convinced that will happen.

There are plenty of fans who believe that Leonard will again come up short and be forced to sit on the sidelines.

“About to make big time money playing 30 games this upcoming season smiles,” one user tweeted.

About to make big time money playing 30 games this upcoming season smile.
— Algenis Gómez (@MacanitaRD) September 25, 2023

Others said that Leonard is aware that he’s about to get injured again soon and is just enjoying his time on the court until then.

He knows he is about to get injured
— Jose Matos (@therealjrmatos) September 26, 2023

It has been a few years since Leonard has played a full season.

With new NBA rules in effect, he may be forced to suit up more often unless his team wants to be fined.

Right now, he is looking healthy – and happy – and ready to play.

Will that still be the case a few months from now?

The post Fans React To Latest Picture Of Kawhi Leonard In The Gym appeared first on The Cold Wire.

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Around the NHL: Rangers’ Panarin day to day; Capitals’ Edmundson out

Published

8 mins ago

September 26, 2023

nigemord@gmail.com

New York Rangers forwards Artemi Panarin (lower body) and Filip Chytil (upper body) are both considered day to day, the team told reporters Tuesday.

“Just in general, with exhibition games, I think you want to just err on the side of caution and keep guys healthy,” Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said, per Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today.

Panarin led the Rangers with 92 points in 82 games last season, while Chytil had 45 points in 74 games.

Meanwhile, forward Mika Zibanejad (upper body) was back on the ice for practice in a non-contact jersey. He will not play Tuesday when the Rangers host the New York Islanders.

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Washington Capitals

Defenceman Joel Edmundson is out with an upper-body injury suffered during a scrimmage on Sunday.

Edmundson is meeting with medical staff on Tuesday to determine the severity of the injury.

The Capitals acquired Edmundson in a trade with the Montreal Canadiens this summer.

Ottawa Senators

The Senators sent three players back to junior on Tuesday.

Defencemen Matthew Andonovski and Tomas Hamara are returning to the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers, while Jorian Donovan is heading to the OHL’s Brantford Bulldogs.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Veteran defenceman Mark Pysyk, with Pittsburgh on a PTO, is out “longer term” with a lower-body injury, coach Mike Sullivan told reporters.

‘We were really looking forward to watching Mark throughout the exhibition season, getting him into some games, and seeing where he might potentially fit on our team,” Sullivan said, per the Penguins.

Pysyk, 31, had three goals and nine assists for 12 points in 68 games with the Buffalo Sabres last season.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Maple Leafs defenceman Simon Benoit was on the ice for practice Tuesday in a red non-contact jersey.

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Benoit had been sidelined with back spasms.

The Leafs signed Benoit to a one-year, $775,000-deal this summer.

The Leafs also said forward Calle Jarnkrok was not practising because of a maintenance day.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Blue Jackets forward Kirill Marchenko returned to the ice Tuesday after missing the start of camp with a back issue, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports.

Marchenko, 23, had 21 goals and four assists in 59 games in his first NHL campaign last year.

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Nets HC Gives An Update On Ben Simmons

Published

16 mins ago

September 26, 2023

nigemord@gmail.com

(Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

The Brooklyn Nets traded away Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving last season.

It left the organization with Ben Simmons as one of the cornerstone players alongside Mikal Bridges.

Simmons played in just 42 games during the 2022-23 season due to a knee injury.

The 27-year-old was scrutinized for missing so many games last season, but according to Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn, Simmons is 100% healthy heading into training camp, via Ian Begley on Twitter.

Nets’ Jacque Vaughn says Ben Simmons is 100 percent healthy and going 5 on 5 entering training camp.
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) September 26, 2023

Simmons’ health has always been a huge concern for him since being drafted into the NBA.

Seven years down the line, it remains an issue for him in his career.

So much so that many believe the Nets made a huge mistake by trading James Harden to the Philadelphia 76ers for the former top pick.

But ahead of the 2023-24 season, Simmons has looked sharp in training clips.

Moreover, with the Nets head coach giving a positive update about Simmons’ health, he may finally get back to being an NBA All-Star level player in the league.

Simmons averaged just 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game last season, a career-low for him in every aspect.

Apart from dealing with constant injuries, Simmons was reportedly going through some mental health struggles due to his strained relationship with the 76ers.

Now, with both issues resolved, there’s nothing that should stop him from becoming one of the best point guards in the league.

However, the true test to Simmons’ skills will be when the new season starts.

Can he lead the Nets to a playoff berth?

The post Nets HC Gives An Update On Ben Simmons appeared first on The Cold Wire.

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