The Golden State Warriors will not go undefeated in the Jimmy Butler III era. They lost 111-107 to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, doomed equally by an inability to make layups, an inability to shoot threes, and the misfortune of facing a red-hot Kyrie Irving.
Now let’s grade the players. As always, grades are based on my expectations for each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.
Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Wednesday’s games, league-average TS was 57.5%.
Jimmy Butler III
35 minutes, 21 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 3 fouls, 8-for-17 shooting, 5-for-6 free throws, 53.5% TS, -17
Butler still isn’t back to his normal conditioning, and in this game it was evident. He didn’t have quite as much energy as he had on Saturday or Monday, and couldn’t shoulder the offensive load quite as successfully.
He still filled out the stat sheet though, and did some exceptional things. But he was a touch slow, and it made every part of his game suffer a little, which explains the middling efficiently, three turnovers, and worse-than-usual defense. He does get a little bit of a pass though, given the situation.
Grade: B-
Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds.
Draymond Green
32 minutes, 13 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 5-for-10 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 3-for-3 free throws, 57.4% TS, -13
Had the Warriors pulled off the win, Green would have arguably been the star, based solely on his defense in the final minutes. It was a truly mesmerizing stretch of stoppage, which featured two of the best blocks of the season.
He had a few moments of recklessness on offense, and he really does seem a little timid when it comes to shooting right now, but it was a good game all around for Dray.
Grade: B+
Quinten Post
12 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds, 2-for-3 shooting, 1-for-2 threes, 83.3% TS, -19
Post moved back into the starting lineup against a Dallas team that was missing Anthony Davis, P.J. Washington, Dereck Lively II, and Dwight Powell. It became clear pretty quickly that a large lineup wouldn’t work though, and the Dubs would get run off the floor.
I thought he played well. It wasn’t that he struggled so much as that the lineups with him on the court struggled.
Grade: B+
Buddy Hield
29 minutes, 3 points, 3 rebounds, 2 fouls, 1-for-9 shooting, 1-for-6 threes, 16.7% TS, -21
Klay Thompson did not have a good shooting night on Wednesday. But his replacement had a much, much worse shooting night.
Grade: D-
Post-game bonus: Worst plus/minus on the team.
Steph Curry
37 minutes, 25 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, 4 turnovers, 3 fouls, 9-for-23 shooting, 4-for-13 threes, 3-for-4 free throws, 50.5% TS, +4
Curry just couldn’t find his shooting rhythm in this game, which has been happening a bit lately. He was a big part of Golden State shooting just 10-for-35 on threes, while Dallas shot 15-for-36. And, with about 37 seconds left and a chance to take the lead, Curry uncharacteristically missed a free throw.
He did some good things, and it’s a sign of how high of a bar he’s set that he can have 25, five, and eight, with some clutch shots, and still get a poor grade. But that is, indeed, the bar he has set.
Grade: C
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points and assists.
Gary Payton II
16 minutes, 14 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 foul, 6-for-9 shooting, 2-for-3 threes, 77.8% TS, +3
A very strong game from GPII. He played good defense on Kyrie Irving (though it was at times a futile effort given how locked in Irving was), and provided quite a spark on offense. He really can be a good offensive player when he’s cutting and attacking.
Grade: A
Kevon Looney
15 minutes, 4 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 1-for-3 shooting, 2-for-2 free throws, 51.5% TS, +12
Strong minutes from Looney, who was a nice presence in the paint against an undersized Dallas team. Looney did excellent work on the glass and protecting the bucket. It wasn’t a game where it would’ve made sense for him to play many more minutes, but he did very well with the minutes he had.
Grade: A-
Moses Moody
27 minutes, 14 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, 4 fouls, 5-for-13 shooting, 2-for-8 threes, 2-for-3 free throws, 48.9% TS, +8
Moody had some struggles shooting the ball, like almost all of his teammates did. But I enjoyed his performance. He started the second half instead of Post, and did some huge things on defense. He’s been earning closing lineup minutes lately, and making the bost of them. Gotta shoot better than this, though, and avoid fouls.
Grade: B
Brandin Podziemski
24 minutes, 8 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 4-for-9 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 44.4% TS, +13
Good defense and good playmaking for Podziemski. But also, poor shooting and a few reckless passes. He’s definitely a second-unit weapon, and he does more good than bad almost every night.
Grade: B-
Post-game bonus: Best plus/minus on the team.
Gui Santos
12 minutes, 0 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, +10
Seven rebounds in 12 minutes? Those are Looney stats!
Santos remains a ball of energy, and I adore how selflessly he fits into the system. Not many young players are comfortable playing 12 minutes without hoisting a single shot. Steve Kerr has to be pleased knowing that he can put Santos it at any point and get good defense, good energy, and selfless, smart play.
Grade: B+
Wednesday’s DNPs: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Jackson Rowe, Pat Spencer
Wednesday’s inactives: Jonathan Kuminga
