Warriors end disasterous road trip with fifth consecutive loss
With four of their five starters out Friday night, the Warriors started
Jordan Poole, Moses Moody, Anthony Lamb, Jonathan Kuminga and Kevon Looney.
>New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum (3) drives to the basket
against Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga in the first half
of an NBA basketball game in New Orleans, Friday, Nov. 4, 2022. (AP
Photo/Gerald Herbert)
By MADELINE KENNEY | mkenney@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: November 4, 2022 at 5:50 p.m. | UPDATED: November 4, 2022 at
8:04 p.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/11/04/warriors-end-disasterous-road-trip-with-fifth-consecutive-loss/

NEW ORLEANS — Coach Steve Kerr warned changes were coming for the
rotation after the Warriors’ latest frustrating loss Thursday night in
Orlando to the two-win Magic.

Kerr’s experiment began one night later in the Warriors’ 114-105 loss to
the New Orleans Pelicans.

With four of the Warriors’ five starters sitting out the backend of the
back-to-back for injury management purposes, the Warriors’ young guys
had a chance to make an argument for why they deserve a spot in the
rotation.

Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody and two-way guys Anthony Lamb and Ty
Jerome were four players who impressed with the opportunity, but they
weren’t able to get the job done down the stretch.

The Warriors, playing without Stephen Curry (right elbow soreness),
Andrew Wiggins (left foot soreness), Klay Thompson (right achilles
tendon) and Draymond Green (lower back), remained close with the
Pelicans for most of the game before the hometown jumped out to an
11-point lead early in the fourth quarter. Golden State pulled within
two points after a Jerome layup. But the Warriors couldn’t pull off the
comeback, extending their losing streak to five games and putting an end
to a disastrous road trip.

“Every game really matters. Every performance matters,” Kerr said.
“Going forward, we’re willing to play anybody. And every guy on the
roster is capable of coming in and helping us so we have to find the
right combinations. And so every night that you get an opportunity, it’s
a chance to show the staff that I should be out there.”

In the bigger picture, Friday’s game was about much more than the end
result. With the main stars out, the young players had the chance to
play through more mistakes, and Kerr & Co. got extended looks at guys
who’s minutes have wavered early this season.

After being benched in three of the Warriors’ last five games entering
Friday, Kuminga earned a starting nod and took advantage of the
opportunity. He found his groove in the second quarter and finished with
18 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Lamb, who’s on a
two-way contract, scored 16 points and had three steals, and Moody, the
most reliable of the Warriors’ 21-and-under club, added 14 points.

Jerome, the Warriors’ other two-way guy, has emerged on this road trip
as a dependable backup guard. He had 16 points, six rebounds and five
assists.

While mistakes were bound to happen with so much youth and inexperience
on the floor, it was Jordan Poole who had the toughest night.

Poole, who signed a rookie contract extension north of $100 million at
the start of the season, carried over his struggles from Florida to
Louisiana. He’s shot 12-for-40 from the field over the last three games,
including 5-for-18 Friday night. He’s made only five of his 22
3-pointers over that span. Poole scored seven of his 20 points against
the Pelicans came from the foul line.

One of Poole’s five turnovers resulted in a transition windmill dunk for
Zion Williamson, which forced Kerr to call his second timeout in less
than a minute and a half in the second quarter.

Meanwhile, James Wiseman had another up-and-down night. The former No. 2
overall pick was clearly frustrated with his mistakes. He finished with
five points and six rebounds in 17 minutes.

The game showed some promise of competence and effort among the
reserves, but ended an overall disappointing 0-5 road trip. Over the
last week, the Warriors fell to three bottom feeding Eastern Conference
teams (Charlotte Hornets, Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic) and the
struggling Miami Heat.

The Warriors (3-7) are off to their worst start in the Kerr era.

The Warriors, now 12th place in the Western Conference, remain winless
on the road, dropping to 0-6 away from Chase Center this season. They’ll
return home Monday to host the Sacramento Kings.

Allen wrote:
> Warriors end disasterous road trip with fifth consecutive loss

> With four of their five starters out Friday night, the Warriors started
> Jordan Poole, Moses Moody, Anthony Lamb, Jonathan Kuminga and Kevon Looney.
>
> By MADELINE KENNEY | mkenney@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
> PUBLISHED: November 4, 2022 at 5:50 p.m. | UPDATED: November 4, 2022 at
> 8:04 p.m.
> https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/11/04/warriors-end-disasterous-road-trip-with-fifth-consecutive-loss/
>
>
>
> NEW ORLEANS — Coach Steve Kerr warned changes were coming for the
> rotation after the Warriors’ latest frustrating loss Thursday night in
> Orlando to the two-win Magic.
>
> Kerr’s experiment began one night later in the Warriors’ 114-105 loss to
> the New Orleans Pelicans.
>
> With four of the Warriors’ five starters sitting out the backend of the
> back-to-back for injury management purposes, the Warriors’ young guys
> had a chance to make an argument for why they deserve a spot in the
> rotation.
>

Disasterous is right.

--Robin