https://www.nbcsportsbayarea.com/nba/golden-state-warriors/observations-brandin-podziemski-loss-pacers/1716218/

What we learned as Warriors squander hot start in loss to Pacers

By Michael Wagaman

• Published March 22, 2024

SAN FRANCISCO – Stephen Curry had 25 points and 10 rebounds, but the
Warriors struggled through another rough game at home and couldn’t
disrupt the Pacers’ mojo at Chase Center, losing to Indiana 123-111 on
Friday night.

Klay Thompson added 17 points off the bench for Golden State. Chris Paul
had 12 points, six rebounds and four assists but was called for two
technicals and ejected late in the fourth quarter. Brandin Podziemski
had 13 points and 10 rebounds.

The Warriors (36-33) entered the night a half game behind the
ninth-place Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference but fell to the
Pacers after a sloppy third quarter and never recovered.

Indiana improved to 5-0 at Chase Center. The Pacers are the only NBA
team that is undefeated at the Warriors’ home on the edge of the San
Francisco Bay.

Golden State got within seven, 116-109, with 3:07 remaining following an
alley-oop dunk by Jonathan Kuminga and a short jumper from Andrew Wiggins.
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The Warriors lost despite allowing just 20 points over the final 12 minutes.

Golden State leaves Saturday for a five-game road trip beginning in
Minnesota on Saturday.

Curry got the Warriors going and scored 13 of the Warriors’ 38 points in
the first quarter. Thompson shouldered the scoring burden after that,
pouring in 10 of his points including a pair of smooth 3s in the second
quarter.

Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton was a problem all night and kept the Pacers
(40-31) close. He nailed a 30-foot runner that beat the buzzer and
trimmed Golden State’s lead to 67-66 at the half.

Here are the takeaways from Friday’s game:

Tough times in the third

The Pacers pulled away in the third quarter when they focused more on
driving the paint rather than settling for jumpers.

Indiana had a clear size advantage and it showed, as the Pacers
repeatedly got inside with little to no resistance. They were
particularly effective in transition and got several easy layups because
of it.

A lot of that was because the Warriors went cold offensively, connecting
on only 30.7 percent (8 of 26) of their shots.

The Dubs also committed a handful of silly turnovers that enabled
Indiana to get out running while outscoring Golden State 36-21 in the
quarter.

Kuminga and Wiggins MIA

Kuminga and Wiggins have been the wild cards for the Warriors during the
second half of the season. When they’re going well, the rest of Golden
State seems to follow and good things happen. And when they’re off, the
dynamic of the team changes significantly.

Kuminga, who has been a scoring machine over the past six weeks, was
noticeably quiet for most of Friday night. Rather than driving
powerfully through the lane, he settled for mid-range jumpers and
3-point attempts. Even when he tried to go to the rack, he didn’t find
many clean avenues to get through.

The young forward missed nine of his first 10 shots, then appeared to
break out of it in the third when he made a steal and raced down court
for a powerful dunk that has become his trademark.

Kuminga had a chance at a second breakaway dunk moments later, but the
ball got caught on the rim and bounced away.

Wiggins was coming off one of his best all-around games of the season
but never found any sort of flow against the Pacers.

No 3-point flow

The Warriors never found a rhythm to their 3-point shooting and had an
equally tough time trying to contain the Pacers from the perimeter.

Wiggins, Kuminga, Green and Moses Moody were a combined 0-for-10 behind
the arc. Curry shot 6 of 18 while Thompson was 3-for-10. Podziemski went
3-for-5 to keep the team’s total respectable.

Defensively, the Warriors allowed far too many open and easy looks to
the Pacers.

Two days after surrendering 18 threes to the Memphis Grizzlies, the
Warriors had more troubles closing out on shooters. The Pacers were 15
of 36 (41.7 percent) on distance shooting, the 18th time in 68 games
that opponents have made 15 or more from deep.