What we learned as Steph struggles in Warriors' win over Jazz originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
SAN FRANCISCO -- No Klay Thompson, no Draymond Green, no Andre Iguodala and no Donovan Mitchell. Sunday night at Chase Center wasn't filled with quite as many stars as some might have hoped with the Warriors and Utah Jazz squaring off.
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Still, this was a back and forth game all night long between two of the best teams in the Western Conference, and the Warriors prevailed with a 94-92 win over the Jazz.
Golden State started off strong right out of the gates, swinging the ball around the floor, avoiding costly mistakes and shooting much better from beyond the 3-point line than in previous games. They played a winning brand of basketball -- outside of an ugly fourth quarter -- even with Steph Curry struggling with his 3-point shot. Curry went 1-for-13 on 3-pointers, and 4-for-7 on 2-point shots, finishing with 13 points.
He played 39 and 44 minutes the previous two games, and it showed. A Monday off before playing the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday should be a long day of rest for Curry.
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In the end, that didn't matter as a complete team effort was too much for a Mitchell-less Jazz squad.
Here are three takeaways from a Warriors win that improved their record to 34-13 this season.
An Aggressive Jordan Poole
Coming into Sunday night, it looked like Poole would face another big test as he gets used to coming off the bench with Thompson back in the starting lineup. Entering the game against the Jazz, Poole was averaging 17.9 points as a starter and only 11.6 off the bench.
But with Klay being a late scratch to left knee soreness, Poole started at shooting guard and continued to shine in the same backcourt as Steph. He attacked the hoop, let it fly from 3-point range and scored a team-high 20 points.
The highlight of the night belonged to Poole as he put Jordan Clarkson on skates before nailing one of his four 3-pointers.
Rudy Gobert Without Green
Gobert was listed as questionable before the game and wound up playing 36 minutes. With Green out, it certainly had to be concerning how the Warriors would try and contain the 7-foot-1 center.
Though he grabbed 18 rebounds, Gobert scored only 12 points. He was minus-5 in plus-minus and didn't record a block.
On the other side, Warriors center Kevon Looney scored 10 points and had six rebounds. He was a plus-10.
For his career, Gobert averaged 20 points and 19 rebounds against Golden State coming into the contest.
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Battle of the 3s
The Warriors haven't been themselves when it comes to making it rain from long-distance lately. Curry continued to struggle there, despite having plenty of open looks.
The Jazz came into the night leading the NBA in 3-pointers made per game and ranked sixth in 3-point percentage. On this night, both teams had a bad night, but the Warriors (13) made two more 3-pointers than the Jazz (11). Utah shot 31.4 percent from there and the Warriors made only 31 percent of their attempts.
Damion Lee tied his season-high with four 3-pointers and Poole made four as well. Otto Porter Jr., starting for Green, went 3-for-4 on 3-point attempts.
It doesn't help not having Klay, though the Warriors have to be better if they're going to rely so much on their 3-point shot.
