Portland Trail Blazers vs. Golden State Warriors: Postgame Grades and Analysis
In a 116-105 win for the Golden State Warriors over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday, Stephen Curry made history, breaking his own record for three-pointers made in a season.
And he wasn't satisfied with just setting the record. He finished the game with an electrifying 45 points on 17-of-23 shooting, including 8-of-13 from three-point range. He also dished out a game-high 10 assists.
Portland's LaMarcus Aldridge did his best to keep the Blazers close with 27 points on 11-of-24 shooting, but Curry's barrage was too much to overcome.
| Stephen Curry | A+ |
| Klay Thompson | A- |
| Draymond Green | A- |
| Andrew Bogut | B+ |
| Harrison Barnes | B+ |
| Rest of Team | F |
| LaMarcus Aldridge | B+ |
| Damian Lillard | B+ |
| Nicolas Batum | B- |
| Arron Afflalo | Inc. |
| Rest of Team | B+ |
Golden State Warriors
Stephen Curry: A+
It looked like Curry wanted to go ahead and break his record in the first quarter, just to get it out of the way. He drilled four threes in that opening frame and established the pace with which Golden State would play the rest of the game. Teammate James Michael McAdoo had this quip about teamwork:
He didn't really slow down for the rest of the game, coming up with critical threes, passes or drives whenever his team needed a jolt.
When Curry's Splash Brother, Klay Thompson, is also cooking, it's hard to imagine any team being able to slow the Warriors down.
Thompson actually did the bulk of his damage inside the three-point line, taking smaller defenders like C.J. McCollum down into the post.
He now has the ability to score at all three levels (long, mid- and short range), and that full arsenal was on display. He finished with 26 points on 10-of-21 shooting.
Draymond Green: A-
Tasked with defending the 6'11" Aldridge for most of the night, 6'7" Draymond Green proved to be a useful nuisance for the Warriors.
Aldridge still got his numbers, but Green did manage to hold him under 50 percent shooting by crowding the majority of Aldridge's mid-range jumpers.
Green was also physical in one-on-one post-up situations, frustrating his man to the point it appeared Aldridge was more concerned with creating space with his elbow in spin moves than with actually shooting.
On the offensive side of the floor, Green was his typically versatile self, scoring 11 points and dishing out three assists.
He also did his job in the sometimes underappreciated third of the game, rebounding. He grabbed a game-high 14 boards.
Andrew Bogut: B+
Andrew Bogut shared some of the responsibility of watching Aldridge with Green, particularly when Portland deployed small lineups for much of the second half.
When he wasn't keyed on the ball against Aldridge, Bogut was patrolling the paint. He didn't get any blocks, but his presence was clear on a number of drives.
Offensively, he showed some nifty post moves and a little athleticism on a first-quarter alley-oop, finishing with 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting.
But as always, his best asset on that end of the floor is his vision. Golden State has the luxury of running its offense through Bogut, and he showed off that passing ability with four assists.
Harrison Barnes: B+
Harrison Barnes played about as solid a game as possible within his role. He only takes the shots that open up for him. Those were mostly inside in this one.
He finished 5-of-6 from the field for 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds, dished out four assists and helped hold Nicolas Batum to 3-of-9 shooting.
Rest of Team: F
The typically stout Warriors bench struggled to find any rhythm, going 6-of-23 for 12 points as a unit. The only player to shoot over 50 percent was Marreese Speights, who played just eight minutes.
Portland Trail Blazers
LaMarcus Aldridge: B+
He may have been bothered for much of the game by Green and Bogut, but Aldridge still caught a little hot streak in the second half to keep the Blazers in the game.
That mostly coincided with an effort to score in the low post. When Green started a possession on him, Aldridge would try to establish position inside. If it was Bogut, he'd start outside and then drive to the paint.
Going after specific weaknesses rather than settling for the jumper is something that Aldridge will need to do more in the postseason.
Damian Lillard : B+
Damian Lillard is one of the best point guards in the NBA, and he was completely shredded by Curry. 20 points, eight assists and six rebounds would normally stand out, but not when you get torched to the tune of 45 on the other end.
In fairness, Lillard wasn't always on Curry, but that's also part of the problem. Coach Terry Stotts had to put some of his longer defenders on Golden State's point guard, opening up matchup problems all over the rest of the floor.
Nicolas Batum: B-
Batum struggled to score, but as always, he still made an impact by contributing in other ways. He grabbed 10 boards and dished out seven assists.
If he's unable to space the floor, though, Portland's offense can go through some lulls.
Arron Afflalo: Inc.
Arron Afflalo left the game with a shoulder injury after scoring eight points on 4-of-6 shooting. The Oregonian's Joe Freeman noted the Blazers' PR staff's comments on the nature of Afflalo's injury:
He played some physical defense on Thompson before going down but really didn't make a huge overall impact on the game.
Rest of Team: B+
With the typically solid Steve Blake and Chris Kaman off, a trio of young Blazers reserves showed up in a big way.
Allen Crabbe and Meyers Leonard combined to shoot 4-of-4 from the field for nine points and seven rebounds.
But the biggest story was McCollum, who could have a much bigger role if Afflalo is down for an extended period. McCollum sliced and diced his way to 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting.
Coming Up Next
Portland's next game will be at home, against the Utah Jazz on Saturday at 10 p.m. ET. Aldridge will face another stingy defender in Rudy Gobert.
Golden State will be in action on Saturday as well, taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves at home at 10:30 p.m. ET. With the No. 1 seed wrapped up, the Warriors may start looking to rest players soon.
Andy Bailey covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him @AndrewDBailey.
