Warriors vs. Suns: Score, Highlights and Reaction from 2015 Regular Season
The venues keep changing, but the Golden State Warriors keep rolling, as the defending NBA champions moved their season-opening winning streak to 17 Friday after knocking off the Phoenix Suns 135-116 at Talking Stick Resort Arena.
It was obvious from the opening tip that the Warriors were going to have fun at Phoenix's expense. They scored 44 points in the first quarter, with reigning NBA MVP Stephen Curry playing out of his mind, per NBA on ESPN:
As scary as it is for the rest of basketball, he might have just been scratching the surface with his MVP campaign last year. The 27-year-old, who finished with 41 points, eight assists and six rebounds, has increased his scoring output by more than eight per game and is averaging nearly one more rebound per game.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, Curry's increase in scoring is nearly double the previous mark for a reigning league MVP:
Oh, per the Warriors' official Twitter account, Curry is also capable of dropping dimes too:
With Curry scoring and distributing at will, it should not come as a surprise that Golden State set a new NBA record for three-pointers made in the first half, per NBA Stats:
Of those 15 shots made in the first half, Curry had seven of them. Klay Thompson added three of them to provide support.
Curry's three-point barrage also moved him higher up the career list, per the NBA on ESPN:
It's worth mentioning that Curry moved past LeBron James on the career three-point field goals made despite playing in 494 fewer games. He didn't have to play in the fourth quarter because the game was well in hand after three quarters.
Here is the shot that put Curry ahead of James in the record books, per the NBA's official Twitter account:
Despite the victory and various records, the news was not all good for Golden State. Star forward Harrison Barnes left after playing 21 minutes with a sprained left ankle and did not return, according to Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Barnes' injury does bring up a point James made earlier this week when commenting on the Warriors' success. Speaking to ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin, James said Golden State is "the most healthy team I've ever seen in NBA history."
The Warriors didn't have to rely on Barnes in this particular game because Curry was shooting out of his mind, Leandro Barbosa couldn't miss (8-of-9 with five threes) and Draymond Green had a triple-double (14 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists). But replacing a star defender who averages 13.8 points per game will not be easy if he has to miss time.
Even though there is still a long way to go this NBA season, the Warriors are exhibiting a level of dominance not seen since at least the 72-win Chicago Bulls in 1995-96. Per Basketball-Reference.com, that Chicago team outscored opponents by an average of 12.3 points per game.
Golden State has been better than that mark, beating the opposition by an average of 15.8 points per game, per ESPN.com. Going back to last year, the Warriors have won their last 21 regular-season games.
While there are many franchises that would be thrilled to have a winning streak half as long as Golden State's, Curry told reporters, per Diamond Leung of the San Jose Mercury News, after beating the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday that this team has discussed the big number.
"We talk about 33," Curry said. "I think I've probably talked about it more than anybody else on the team, just because I know about the history and just really how hard it is."
The scary thing for the rest of the NBA is that Golden State didn't play its best game against Phoenix. The Suns shot 48.9 percent from the floor and had 11 more field-goal attempts, yet they were still blown out on their home court because the Warriors made 22 three-pointers and shot 56.8 percent from the floor.
There's still a long way to go before the Warriors are on the same plane as the 1971-72 Lakers. Their next game against a team over .500 comes Wednesday at Charlotte. Looking way ahead, the Warriors could have a chance to match the Lakers' record on Christmas against Cleveland in an NBA Finals rematch.
Postgame Reaction
The main story for Golden State coming out of the game was Barnes' injury, with interim head coach Luke Walton saying Barnes' X-Rays were negative on his ankle and it's just a sprain, per Bryce Miller of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Walton also didn't hold back about his team's performance, which was very sloppy despite the 135-point barrage. The Warriors had 23 turnovers, in addition to allowing Phoenix to score 116 points, prompting this response from their coach, per ESPN's Amin Elhassan:
That's a telling statement, almost in the Gregg Popovich vein, because outsiders are getting hung up on the winning streak and what it means. Meanwhile, the Warriors are already thinking about how to repeat their postseason effort from last year.
Also per Elhassan, Walton expanded on the defensive problems by saying, "we came out in the second half and didn't play well as a team. Took quick shots, didn't defend..."
On a more positive note, Barbosa sent out a tweet about his successful game against the team he spent the first seven years of his career playing for:
