Matisse Thybulle and the keyed-in Philadelphia defense forced Stephen Curry to go 3-for-14 from 3. An otherwise pitiful shooting night for the rest of the Warriors couldn’t make up for his inefficiency.
In an old-school defensive struggle, the Warriors (21-5) faltered down the stretch to lose, 102-93, in Philadelphia. Golden State shot 12-for-48 from 3 (25%), including Curry’s rough night.
Here are three takeaways from Golden State’s loss:
Still chasing history
From the jump, it was clear tonight was not the night for Stephen Curry to break the all-time 3-point record. With Matisse Thybulle chasing him around the court and matching his minutes, 10 triples felt just about impossible. Even for Curry.
On ball-screens, Philadelphia’s bigs would hard-show, sticking to Curry until Thybulle could recover. Thybulle’s ability to fight through screens rapidly kept Philadelphia’s centers protected, as they only had to stay in front of Curry momentarily.
On off-ball screens, Thybulle stayed locked to Curry, glued to him like a mosquito on fly tape. Early in the second quarter, Thybulle attached himself to Curry through a screen and blocked his third 3-point attempt.
Thybulle’s destruction was evident as soon as he picked up his third foul and checked out of the game. Against a combination of Danny Green and Tyrese Maxey, Curry hit his first two 3s of the game and also scored inside — an eight-point spurt in just over two minutes.
Curry’s eyes seemed to light up whenever anyone not named Matisse Thybulle stood in front of him. Even then, Curry still missed some makeable looks. The record will have to wait, most likely until Monday in Indiana or Tuesday in Madison Square Garden.
There may not be a better equipped defender in the NBA to slow down Curry than the 24-year-old Thybulle. It takes a village with Curry, but Thybulle makes an impressive mayor. There would be no history on his watch.
Draymond staying aggressive
Draymond Green picked up his second foul six minutes into the game. He sat on the bench briefly, but when he returned, he was the same ol’ Draymond.
Green didn’t let the foul trouble change his physicality. He drew an offensive foul on Joel Embiid while fighting for post position. The next trip, he bottled up Tyrese Maxey at the rim. And then he bothered Embiid at the rim. All without fouling.
But then in the third quarter, Green picked up two ill-advised fouls — one accidentally tripping Embiid on the perimeter and another trying to screen Thybulle in semi-transition.
Even as Green sat for most of the third, the Warriors played the Sixers even, mostly thanks to an 11-point quarter from Jordan Poole.
The four fouls didn’t prevent Green from forcing a Thybulle miss on a fast break in the fourth quarter, though. Green still recorded three steals and disrupted PHI when on the court, despite the foul trouble.
Over the years, Green has earned Steve Kerr’s trust to play while in foul trouble. Green providing excellent, physical defense even with fouls credited to him has become common, but it shouldn’t go underappreciated.
Going small vs. Embiid
Joel Embiid didn’t play in Golden State and Philadelphia’s last matchup. But every time a dominant, traditional center steps on the court against the Warriors, concerned eyes track to the paint.
Kevon Looney, at 6-foot-9, did a solid job against Embiid in one-on-one situations. He moved his feet quickly when Embiid tried to face him up, and challenged with verticality at the rim. His physicality bothered Embiid.
In the third quarter, though, the Warriors went with a small lineup briefly with Embiid on the floor. Nemanja Bjelica played center, and Embiid tried sealing him or Juan Toscano-Anderson deep in the post.
But the Warriors swarmed. Gary Payton II crashed down to the paint in help defense and forced a jump ball. Bjelica and Tosano-Anderson combined to force an Embiid travel. Even against the smaller lineup, Embiid struggled.
And late in the fourth, the Warriors went to a 3-2 zone, which similarly limited Embiid — though he did finish an and-1 over Toscano-Anderson. GSW had answers for the four-time All-Star.
Embiid had to work for his 26 points. He went 7-for-16 from the floor, and although the Warriors lost, they can be encouraged by the way they slowed down the center.