Kerr sounds alarm after Warriors’ latest loss without Curry: ‘We don’t
know how to win’
Outside of Jordan Poole and Otto Porter Jr., Golden State has struggled
without Curry in last two games against Spurs and Magic
>SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Golden State Warriors head
coach Steve Kerr reacts to a call during their game against the
Minnesota Timberwolves in the third quarter at the Chase Center in San
Francisco, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area
News Group)
>SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Golden State Warriors head
coach Steve Kerr reacts to a call during their game against the
Minnesota Timberwolves in the third quarter at the Chase Center in San
Francisco, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area
News Group)
By MADELINE KENNEY | mkenney@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: March 23, 2022 at 5:45 a.m. | UPDATED: March 23, 2022 at 7:26
a.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/03/23/kerr-sounds-alarm-after-latest-loss-without-curry-we-dont-know-how-to-win/

ORLANDO, Fla. – It’s hard to understand how the team tied with the
third-best win percentage in the NBA doesn’t “know how to win.” But the
Warriors are having a major identity crisis as of late without Stephen
Curry.

Golden State looked out of sync Tuesday night in its second straight
embarrassing loss to a team many believed it should’ve beaten, causing
coach Steve Kerr to sound the alarm in his postgame news conference.

“Is there any level of concern? Yeah, we just lost two games in a row
without Steph,” he said after the Warriors’ 94-90 loss to the Orlando
Magic at Amway Center. “So the schedule gets harder, so yeah, there’s a
little bit of concern, we’ve gotta do better.”

Outside of Jordan Poole and Otto Porter Jr., Golden State has struggled
without Curry on the floor in its last two games against the San Antonio
Spurs and Magic. And Tuesday’s game was another contest riddled with
“mental mistakes.”

Klay Thompson made a critical error with 13 seconds remaining in the
game, fouling Franz Wagner on a 3-point attempt. Franz converted on all
three shots from the charity stripe, giving the Magic a four-point lead
and ultimately securing the win.

The Warriors also gave away the ball 18 times – four more than the Magic.

Avoiding costly and bad fouls, taking care of the ball and being sharper
on switches were on the laundry list of areas that Kerr said after the
game Golden State needed to improve if it wanted to maintain its seeding
in the Western Conference over the next two weeks without the team’s
star guard.

“There’s got to be a level of discipline, accountability, competitive
desire,” Kerr said. “And I know these are great guys. I love these guys
in the locker room, awesome guys, and I know they want to win. But we
have to learn how to win and right now we don’t know how to win.”

Said Draymond Green, “We’re playing soft, we’re playing stupid, we’re
just not playing good basketball. We’re getting punked.”

Slow starts have been a glaring issue for the Warriors in the last two
games. After shootaround in Orlando, Kerr had stressed the importance of
locking in on the game plan early to prevent another stagnant start.

But the Warriors looked lethargic in the opening frame — again falling
into a double-digit hole in the first quarter.

The Warriors need their starting five to establish the tone early on
both ends of the court. The starters made only seven of their 27
field-goal attempts in the first half.

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It’s back to the drawing board for Kerr, who again is shuffling the
lineup to try to find a winning combination.

“We have to address everything,” Kerr said. “Without Steph, everything
changes. It’s like a domino effect.”

Golden State (47-25) is trending in the wrong direction which could
jeopardize its seeding. The Warriors are currently in third place in the
Western Conference, with the Utah Jazz sitting only two games behind,
and the Memphis Grizzlies are two games ahead for the second seed.

Players like Poole say they don’t monitor the playoff seedings.
Meanwhile, Kerr said he’s keeping a close eye on what’s happening.

“I’m watching it every day,” Kerr said. “I look at the scores and look
at the schedules and for sure I’m aware of what’s happening, [but] a
number one concern and goal is to help our team play at the best of our
potential.”

Green was confident the Warriors can regroup to salvage the rest of the
road trip, with a date Wednesday against the Eastern Conference
top-seeded Miami Heat.

“I don’t doubt that we can fix it, but if we want to win some games,
it’s gotta be fixed,” he said.

--
Madeline Kenney | Warriors reporter