I hope you’re a fan of roller-coasters, as the Golden State Warriors took everyone on a wild ride on Monday night versus the Orlando Magic. They trailed by 11 points in the opening quarter. They eliminated the deficit flawlessly, resulting in a tied game at halftime. They established a 15-point advantage in the third quarter. They lost that whole advantage, falling behind at one moment in the fourth quarter.
They triumphed, 104-99. Essentially, that is all that matters, even if your heart rate might wish to dispute this.
The match commenced with yet another fresh starting lineup, with Draymond Green back in action, joining Steph Curry, Buddy Hield, Andrew Wiggins, and Quinten Post as the first five.
The outcome? No offense intended. Practically speaking. Following Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s three-pointer on the opening possession of the game, neither team scored for over three minutes. The Warriors failed to make their initial six attempts, and none were near the basket. The Magic failed to score on their next seven attempts. It wasn’t until the 8:08 mark that the Warriors finally scored with a Curry and-one.
That didn’t really unleash a lot. Both teams struggled offensively, but Orlando eventually began to sink some shots, establishing a double-digit advantage. With less than a minute left, Golden State had only 18 points. However, they concluded with a two-for-one burst, starting with a three-pointer from Moses Moody, followed by Curry getting fouled on a halfcourt shot at the buzzer. Although making only 2-of-14 from beyond the arc, they were down just 26-18 at the quarter’s conclusion.
The offense gradually made progress in the second quarter, as they steadily chipped away. Fueled by impressive performances from Dennis Schröder and Brandin Podziemski, the Warriors powered through a 15-5 streak that closed the gap and leveled the score with roughly five minutes remaining in the half. However, as if to highlight that issues remain unresolved, they then went over three-and-a-half minutes without scoring, allowing a 7-0 run by the Magic in the meantime. Then, to draw you back in, the Warriors embarked on a 6-0 run themselves.
Although Golden State continues to struggle with squandering leads, their performance in closing out games has subtly improved, as demonstrated against a younger, less-experienced opponent. With the game tied and three minutes left, Curry failed to make an extravagant layup, but Kevon Looney — who excelled in rebounding — somehow twisted his body for an incredible tip-in to grant the Dubs a two-point advantage. Due to solid defense, the lead was maintained until the 1:44 mark, when Green hit a floater to narrow it to a four-point game.
Franz Wagner responded with a circus shot to narrow the gap for the Magic to two points, but just before the one-minute mark, a rolling Looney discovered Moses Moody in the corner for a crucial three-pointer, extending the lead to five points.
Following Green’s display of his defensive skills with a top-notch block on Paolo Banchero, Curry was fouled with 32.4 seconds left. After two free throws, the score became a seven-point game.
Orlando made one final effort, as Wagner went for a dunk, Wiggins converted one of two free throws, and Cole Anthony hit an awkward, desperate three-pointer to cut it to a three-point deficit.
However, the Warriors easily managed to get the ball to Curry for two free throws, finalizing the score at 104-99.
