Warriors Slow Andre Drummond's Fast Start and Monday NBA Takeaways
Are you an up-and-coming NBA team that's excited about the new season? Maybe you've got a great, young big man who's ready to step up not only as his team's centerpiece, but also as one of the league's pre-eminent players.
My advice to you? Avoid the Golden State Warriors at all costs.
Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans learned that lesson in their two losses to the defending champs during the opening week of the 2015-16 campaign. On Monday, Andre Drummond and the Detroit Pistons found out for themselves what all the fuss was about.
With Festus Ezeli starting at center and Andrew Bogut coming off the bench after a six-game absence, the Warriors held Drummond, the back-to-back Eastern Conference Player of the Week, to 14 points and 15 rebounds in a 109-95 win that extended their franchise-record home winning streak to 23 games.
And, yes, in Drummond's case, a 14-15 night counts as a downgrade. Coming into the evening, the UConn product had averaged a whopping 20.3 points and 20.3 rebounds in six games.
Golden State went out of its way to make sure it wouldn't become Drummond's latest victim. The hosts did their darndest to make it difficult for Reggie Jackson and the rest of the Pistons' perimeter players to get the ball into Drummond's hands down low. Whenever they did, the Dubs were quick to double the 22-year-old and force him into awkward, contested shots.
Despite Drummond's (relative) struggles, Detroit did well to hang around well into the fourth quarter. As Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey pointed out, the Pistons sicced some of their talented perimeter players on Stephen Curry to limit the MVP to a season-low 22 points on 7-of-18 shooting:
But Curry had plenty of help. Klay Thompson, for one, came to his Splash Brother's aid with his best game of the young season: 24 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Three other Warriors (Andre Iguodala, Harrison Barnes and Leandro Barbosa) scored in double figures. Draymond Green stuffed the stat sheet with six points, 10 rebounds, nine assists, four steals and two blocks.
And Bogut, recently recovered from a concussion, chipped in eight points and nine boards in 19 minutes off the bench.
Drummond wasn't without his own support. Rookie Stanley Johnson scored a team-, season- and career-high 20 points off the pine. Reggie Jackson pumped in 20 points and five assists of his own. Caldwell-Pope and Marcus Morris added 15 points apiece.
And Drummond, despite his off night, remained in rarefied statistical air, alongside a certain legendary former Warrior, per ESPN Stats & Info:
Still, Golden State got the better end of history on this night. At 8-0, the Warriors are off to their best start since leaving Philadelphia for the Bay Area in 1962. As owners of the newest Larry O'Brien Trophy, they're in privileged position to teach everyone in the NBA a thing or two about what it takes to win.
That includes Drummond and the Pistons, who dropped to 5-2 but gained some valuable knowledge in the process:
PG-13 Sets Pace for Indy
Paul George could've gotten a pass if he'd started slow against the Orlando Magic on Monday night. The day before, he and the Indiana Pacers were in Cleveland, giving the Cavaliers all they could handle in a 101-97 loss. George was particularly productive, pouring in 32 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out six assists while checking LeBron James on the other end in his 39 minutes.
Apparently, that performance didn't tucker out PG-13—not at the outset, anyway. The All-Star forward put together an opening quarter against the Magic that turned out to be the finest of his career thus far, per VAVEL-USA's Grant Afseth:
George scored just eight points over the final three stanzas, but he did record five of his six assists thereafter. One of those went to George Hill, who scored all 23 of his points after Indy's other George went cold. Together, they helped the Pacers fend off the feisty Magic, 97-84.
Okafor Goes to School
With Nerlens Noel sidelined by wrist injuries, the Philadelphia 76ers sported exactly one player worth the price admission against the Chicago Bulls. That player, Jahlil Okafor, got plenty of bang for his buck, both good and bad.
The rookie out of Duke got off to a rough start during Philly's 111-88 loss. He went into the locker room at halftime with just four points on 2-of-12 shooting, courtesy of contests from Pau Gasol and a Chicago front line that, despite Joakim Noah (left knee)'s absence, was more than formidable.
Sixers head coach Brett Brown, though, wasn't worried about his young center's struggles, as DraftExpress' Derek Bodner reported:
The 19-year-old responded with a 14-point third quarter and finished the game with 21 points and a career-high 15 rebounds.
Gasol, however, did his part to teach the young fella a thing or two about the NBA. The seven-foot Spaniard blocked six shots, including several of Okafor's, and took his opposite number to task for these two of his 16 points on the night (h/t NBA):
Welcome to the League, Young Jah.
Lillard Takes the Battle, But Mudiay Wins the War
It seems like only yesterday that Damian Lillard was taking his lumps from Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook and the rest of the NBA's elite floor generals. Now, with two All-Star appearances under his belt, a rebuilding Portland Trail Blazers squad around him and a $120 million extension soon to stuff his bank account, Lillard belongs among the best at his position.
That, during Portland's visit to the Mile High City, meant it was his turn to punish another promising point guard: Denver Nuggets rookie Emmanuel Mudiay. The Weber State product exploited Mudiay for 30 points on 9-of-22 shooting—his third 30-point game in his last five outings—while dishing out seven dimes to his revamped rotation mates.
But it was Mudiay who had the last laugh. His 18 points and five assists weren't on par with Lillard's performance, but the former Guangdong Southern Tiger came out ahead with a 108-104 win.
Cousins Can't Keep Up with Kawhi
DeMarcus Cousins couldn't have picked a tougher way to return from his Achilles strain if he had tried. The All-Star center was back in the the Sacramento Kings lineup on Monday, but the rust on his game was evident throughout a 106-88 loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
Boogie labored his way through a 5-of-20 shooting night against San Antonio's imposing frontcourt of Tim Duncan, LaMarcus Aldridge and David West. He still managed to pile up 21 points and 12 rebounds, thanks to an 11-of-15 night at the free-throw line.
But even Cousins couldn't cover for the Kings' conundrum at point guard, where Rajon Rondo (eight points, six rebounds, 12 assists and nine turnovers) had to play the entire game with Darren Collison sidelined by a hamstring injury.
Kawhi Leonard had no such problems imposing his will for the Spurs. The reigning Defensive Player of the Year picked off two passes and blocked two shots, but he did his best work on the other end, where he scored 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting.
It helped that his team's second-string point guard, Patty Mills, was not only healthy but also dropping dimes like this (h/t Spurs):
Boogie must've been jealous.
Timberpups Grow Up
Forget about gazing into the future. The Minnesota Timberwolves are making noise around the NBA right now.
Two nights after fending off the Chicago Bulls in overtime, the T-Wolves took down the veteran Atlanta Hawks, 117-107, for their first win in Georgia since 2002. In doing so, Minnesota snapped Atlanta's seven-game winning streak while extending its own road record to a perfect 4-0.
Andrew Wiggins, the reigning Rookie of the Year, tied his career high with 33 points to go along with five rebounds and four assists in 38 minutes. Karl-Anthony Towns, the No. 1 pick in this year's draft, came through with 17 points and 12 rebounds of his own against Atlanta's undersized front line.
Those two, along with Ricky Rubio and Zach LaVine, did plenty to help the T-Wolves build a seemingly insurmountable 34-point lead at Philips Arena, where the Hawks went 35-6 last season. LaVine scored all 13 of his points during Minnesota's 72-point first half. Wiggins started 11-of-13 from the field, and he punctuated that with this spectacular dunk over Atlanta's Paul Millsap:
Atlanta, though, turned 19 Minnesota turnovers into 35 points, which fueled a 60-25 run that put the home team ahead with 3:25 left in the fourth quarter. The Hawks' Big Three of Millsap, Jeff Teague and Al Horford came alive for a combined 42 points during that stretch.
But those three could only carry Atlanta so far. Teague saw Towns swat away three of his shots down the stretch as the T-Wolves scored the final 11 points of the game—including seven by Wiggins alone.
The fact that Minnesota had such a massive advantage to give away was no fluke. The Wolves came into Monday holding their opponents to 93.1 points per 100 possessions on a league-low 39.2 percent shooting, per NBA.com, with Kevin Garnett and Tayshaun Prince mentoring Minnesota's kids on that end.
Clearly, the Wolves aren't your run-of-the-mill rebuilding team. In Wiggins and Towns, head coach Sam Mitchell has two potential superstars (and back-to-back No. 1 picks) at his disposal. In Rubio, LaVine, Shabazz Muhammad, Gorgui Dieng and European rookie Nemanja Bjelica, he has a gifted supporting cast that's still years shy of reaching its ceiling.
And in Garnett, Prince, Andre Miller and Kevin Martin, Minnesota has a staff of mentors to bring the late Flip Saunders' vision to life. As Saunders revealed to Zach Lowe, then with Grantland, in July:
"Here's what KG told our players: If you're coming to camp on Sept. 29, and you're coming with the idea that we're not going to make the playoffs, don't even bother coming in. That's all that needs to be said.
"
So far, Garnett's message seems to have gotten through loud and clear.
Clippers-Grizzlies Go at It Again
For all that's changed about the Los Angeles Clippers (their bench) and Memphis Grizzlies (their declining defense), their rivalry remains as ragged and competitive as ever.
In the latest chapter of this basketball shouting match, the two teams combined to shoot 42.6 percent from the field, turn the ball over 32 times, rack up 48 fouls and step to the free-throw line 66 times.
And not to Hack-a-DeAndre either; DeAndre Jordan went 1-of-2 from the charity stripe.
Chris Paul (14 points and four assists) did enough on a sore groin to steer the Clippers through stormy seas. Meanwhile, Blake Griffin (24 points and 12 rebounds) and Zach Randolph (26 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals) produced great lines.
Matt Barnes was a factor in his first action against his old team. He sprinkled the stat sheet with eight points, six rebounds, an assists, two steals and two blocks while helping to hound Paul Pierce, one of his replacements on the wing in L.A., into a night of "0-fers" (0-of-5 from the field and 0-of-4 from three).
Barnes came into this season as a Grizzly with no love lost toward Pierce or head coach Doc Rivers.
"You hear whispers around. Doc's been trying to trade me since he got there, so I just knew it was a matter of time before I was gone," Barnes told Bleacher Report over the summer. "He wanted Paul Pierce the whole time, and he finally got him. I knew if we didn't win a championship, I was going to be out of there."
Barnes was out there for the game's waning moments. He drew a three-shot foul and converted all of them to narrow the score to 90-89 with eight seconds to play.
The Clippers, though, managed to escape with a 94-92 win, thanks to Marc Gasol (18 points and seven rebounds) missing a couple of late shots from the line.
For those of you wondering: We won't see this slugfest again until March 19.
Josh Martin covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter.
