Instant Replay: Warriors Come Back in Brooklyn Without Draymond

The worst offenders were Stephen Curry (with 5), Draymond Green (with 4), and Kevin Durant (with 4 of his own); however, the Warriors also tallied a whopping 35 assists in the game, where the Pistons could only manage 22.

He’ll have his hands full on Friday night with Jeremy Lin, who’s been good since returning from a hamstring injury – averaging almost 14 points on 51 percent shooting in five games back.

However, on Friday against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Nets played McCullough for seven minutes, which was tied for the third-most minutes he’s played all season.

Thompson finished with 17 points and Green (the former Michigan State and Saginaw star) scored five points, but added 10 rebounds and 12 assists. We knew this team would turn the ball over.

“They turned up the defensive intensity, turned up the energy, and were really aggressive on the defensive end”, said Nets coach Kenny Atkinson afterwards of the Warriors. If last game against the Grizzlies was any indication, it will be Marcus Morris to join the bench unit.

“All the games are important”, Lue said. The Nets have a very specific path to victory in each game, and if they’re not hitting three-pointers and Lopez isn’t cooking, the wheels fall off nearly immediately.

“I thought we stuck with it, we did a good job trying to stick with it, but again I think a lot of it is just more on us and what we stopped doing than anything”, Lopez said.

Brook Lopez scored 16 points for the Nets, whose first possession of the game ended when Justin Hamilton’s pass sailed into the third row of the seats. The nine-year center from Stanford is averaging a team-high 20.3 points and ranks sixth in the National Basketball Association with 1.8 blocks per game. While the Nets are hardly a major draw, it was fun to ghosts of Cavs drafts past, with Anthony “Big Daddy Canada” Bennet and Joe Harris playing for the Nets. Curry’s defense ramped up, as he found a way to compensate for a forgettable shooting night (6-of-19 for 15 points). Isaiah Whitehead, who started 14 consecutive games at one point, missed his second straight with a sore left foot. Cleveland is 9-0 against the Atlantic Division. They are getting arrogant right now, and the rest of the league should take notice – Golden State wants to run you out of the building. Irving shot a career-low 32 percent from 3 last season, but has become a marginally more efficient scorer in large part due to better shot selection. Lue was asked if their matchup can approach the Lakers-Celtics rivalry of the 1980s. “If they stay together, we’re going to keep improving”. Their awesome 3 point shooting and team chemistry has guided them along. “It’s a great place to be in”.

Cavaliers: After hosting the Warriors on Sunday, the teams meet again at Golden State on January 16. The Hornets have won five straight over Brooklyn.