Stephen Curry thwarts Overconfident Lakers

A magnificent culmination of the special day that the NBA and, in general, the United States dedicates to the figure of Martin Luther King. This national holiday ended well into the night with a good show at the Staples Center in Los Angeles between the Lakers and the Warriors. The first came with five wins in a row and a feeling of absolute control in the opening weeks of the competition. The latter did so with most of their players ready. Good division duel to test the level of each one with already more than ten appointments per side.

It did not disappoint. Not at all. The Warriors knew how to withstand the blows of some Lakers in which only Schröder and Kuzma gave a great level. At the end of the game, with a substantial distance, Steve Kerr’s men caught the reigning champions relaxed in excess and lifted the victory as the best pickpockets in the big cities. Curry, who was not having his best game either, participated in 12 of the 14 points to which the Angelenos, who were winning by seven, failed to respond in the last four minutes.

The Warriors’ heart beat very strong again. It is shown by the morale they had after what happened in the first half. Another team or the Warriors themselves last year would have shelved the game at halftime.

The first arreón, the exit one, left a Schröder unleashed before which nobody could answer. 10-2, 25-12 and up. The difference was increasing. The first quarter closed with Wiggins repeating the play and with a 3-pointer from Stephen Curry on the horn, so something could be glimpsed there.

In the transition towards the end of the first half, Kelly Oubre (23) and Montrezl Harrell (17) stood out. The first one even blew the second a kiss for which he received a technique. It is surprising that the two did not lose focus with everything they talk about and what they face with others. Another of those who stuck his head there for his own was Eric Paschall, with a much quieter but equally effective job. There were not many defensive breaks, they were well-constructed plays for which baskets were achieved. Those of San Francisco approached a little, but LeBron James appeared at the right moment with four actions almost in a row so that the equalizer was not completed.

Already in the third period, a new demonstration of character for the Warriors to endure. They got two, good run for the Lakers, they got one, good run for the Lakers. It seemed impossible to surpass them. Kyle Kuzma’s three stabs at the visitors from the perimeter were long-range.

The distance was established between 6-8 and 12-14. The remainder of the match was played at that fork. James and Davis were not very in tune, together they finished 12/32 in shooting from the field, but Curry was even worse: the point guard would finish the game with 8/22. The difference was in the ability to react from both sides to a somewhat strange ending.

With four minutes to go the result was 108-101. From there, all Curry. A 2 + 1, two free throws and two assists made the Warriors come back. Only one action of Oubre in which he collaborated with Green did not have the signature of the point guard. The Lakers’ downturn was tremendous, especially from a LeBron James who added a few steps with two missed triples, the last one five tenths from the end and with which he tried the heroic one. Curry – who finished with 26 points – did score a trippy, playing with Davis on the front of the court, with which he did not sentence the match but did put it uphill for the others. And Golden State had a phenomenal finish and added its seventh victory of the season.