What we learned as Warriors' offense sputters in crunch-time loss

What we learned as Warriors’ offense sputters in crunch-time loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

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There are no soft touches, no cupcakes, no easy wins for the Warriors. That much was abundantly clear once again Monday night in Toronto.

The Warriors had a two-day break between games, went through a practice on Sunday and still couldn’t pull away from the reeling Toronto Raptors – who had lost 16 of their previous 17 games.

Golden State found itself in yet another “clutch game,” and a 104-101 loss to this particular team provides sharp realization that there remain many more difficult steps if the Warriors are to climb out of mediocrity.

Stephen Curry scored 26 points to lead Golden State scorers. Andrew Wiggins finished with 20, Kyle Anderson had 13, Dennis Schröder had 12 and Kevon Looney came off the bench to post 10 points and nine rebounds.

Toronto reserve center-forward Chris Boucher, a former Warrior, closed out the game with 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting in the fourth quarter.

After losing two of the first three games of their four-game road trip, the Warriors need a victory over the Timberwolves in Minnesota on Wednesday post a .500 trip.

Here are three observations from a game that is the latest in alarming losses:

Offense Still In A Fog

The Warriors shot 39.8 percent from the field – and 40.1 percent in the paint, where their offense too often goes to die.

On a larger scale, their search for offense continues. The Warriors have had three outbursts over the past six weeks, but there has been no stretch of games where they have stayed at or above the NBA average of roughly 112 points.

While going 7-14 over the past 21 games, only one of the 11 starting lineups over the span reached 100 points in back-to-back games.

Some of the low production stems from the torturous acclimation of Dennis Schröder, who hasn’t found the kind rhythm required for the offense to hum. And Buddy Hield’s 3-point shot has been elusive since mid-November.

When a roster that failed to reach 100 only seven times over the past two seasons already has 11 such games midway through this season, the system is failing.

Much-needed Solid Game From Wiggins

After missing the first two games of the road trip, Wiggins rejoined the team for Sunday’s practice, was back in the starting lineup and delivered a solid all-around performance.

Boy, was it needed.

His 20 points came on 6-of-13 shooting from the field, including 4 of 9 from beyond the arc. He also grabbed three rebounds and provided commendable defense on dangerous Toronto forwards Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett.

After scoring only nine points in his last game, a 114-98 loss to the Miami Heat last Tuesday at Chase Center, Wiggins needed to assert himself back into the offense. With Jonathan Kuminga absent for at least another 10 games, somebody will have to step up as a capable No. 2 scorer behind Curry.

Wiggins, in his hometown, filled that role.

Buddy, Buddy, Buddy

Hield made his ninth start of the 2024-25 NBA season, putting him in excellent position to be Golden State’s No. 2 or No. 3 scorer behind Curry.

Hield played 33 minutes and finished with eight points, tying him with Lindy Waters III as Golden State’s sixth-leading scorer. He shot 3 of 13 from the field, including 2 of 10 from distance. His best work was recording four steals.

Hield has made at least 50 percent of his shots only twice in the last 16 games. He’s averaging 9.0 points during that span.

If Hield could have drained two more triples, the Warriors likely would have found a way to win and avoided the embarrassment of losing to a rebuilding team going nowhere.

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