Who Stepped Up for Warriors with Curry, Butler, Draymond, More Out in Loss to Heat?
The short-handed Golden State Warriors fell to the Miami Heat in Bam Adebayo's return, dropping a 110–96 road loss on Wednesday.
It marked Golden State's 17th game in 29 days across 12 different cities, with four of its five starters sidelined — Stephen Curry, Jonathan Kuminga, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green — along with Al Horford off the bench.
"It's been the toughest early schedule I've ever been a part of in my entire NBA life," head coach Steve Kerr said, per 95.7 The Game (h/t Yahoo Sports).
With the loss, Golden State fell to 9-8. Brandin Podziemski led the team with 20 points, eight rebounds and two assists, while Moses Moody added nine points, six rebounds and four assists.
The bench stepped up as Quinten Post contributed 19 points and six rebounds, and Pat Spencer recorded 11 points, eight rebounds and 13 assists.
Fans praised Golden State's bench-heavy effort despite the loss, noting the strong contributions in the absence of the team's starters.
Adebayo finished with 20 points and seven rebounds, while Andrew Wiggins added 17 points and six rebounds against his former team. Norman Powell led all scorers with 25 points.
Despite the Warriors' lack of depth, they trailed by just four points at halftime. Hield and Podziemski each entered the break with 10 points, while Adebayo, Wiggins and Pelle Larsson each had eight.
The Warriors held a 74-72 lead entering the fourth, but Miami surged in the final quarter to secure a 14-point victory.
Golden State will begin a five-game home stretch against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday.
