“Rocket screens” = Steph Curry relocation threes
[+notes/quotes/video from Warriors-Nuggets]
Have I mentioned you can learn a lot from interviews of players and coaches of Golden State Warriors opponents? The latest nugget (pun intended, and for those of you new to this website, I have indeed mentioned this the last four consecutive posts) comes from Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggets, on if he studies film of Stephen Curry:
Yeah I watch film on Steph… how much he moves especially when he passes it. He relocates to the corner with those rocket screens — we call them rocket screens — and those guys are looking for him, especially Draymond (Green) when he’s out there… It’s a cool and quick way to get threes. Even when you give up the ball he’s still a threat, just like when (Nikola) Jokic and I give up the ball, I’m still a threat.
The rest of the notes, quotes and video are below, in reverse chronological order per usual. There weren’t any postgame podium interviews other than Steve Kerr for both the Timberwolves and Nuggets losses, the former having to do with catching the red-eye flight to the second of back-to-back games (Minneapolis to Denver) and the latter having to do with (I think, I’m guessing) the lack of zest for postgame quotes after a “nothing to write home about” back-to-back loss.
There’s a few clips from Minnesota of Curry splashing from the logo included in the behind-the-scenes video from Denver. I still have a Bob Myers trade deadline post as well as evergreen quotes pertaining to Kevon Looney and Jonathan Kuminga — both of which might wait until the lull before All-Star Weekend, we’ll see.
NEWS FROM OFF-DAY BEFORE MAVS
• Luka Doncic got an MRI today and didn’t practice. Jason Kidd says it’s too soon to say if Doncic will be available tomorrow vs. Warriors. Source told me that the heel contusion is “not severe,” but it’s TBD if Doncic will need to miss time. (Tim MacMahon)
• Dorian Finney-Smith indicated he expects Luka Doncic to be sidelined to start the 5-game trip: “We’ve got to figure it out. Hopefully we might get C-Wood (Christian Wood) back. … That’d be a nice piece to add without Luka playing.” (Tim MacMahon)
• Luka Dončić (right heel contusion) and Christian Wood (left thumb fracture) have now been officially ruled out of Saturday’s game at Golden State and Dallas lists Spencer Dinwiddie (right knee, injury recovery) as questionable. (Marc Stein)
• Draymond Green is questionable tomorrow against the Mavericks with that right calf tightness. Klay Thompson questionable with a non-COVID illness. Steph Curry probable with a lower left leg contusion. Fell hard vs Nuggets. (Anthony Slater)
• Steve Kerr on weekly radio show: Minnesota loss is the one that's really bothering them. “That was really kind of an unforgivable loss.” (95.7 The Game)
• On the Warriors making moves by the trade deadline: “I don’t really expect anything to happen. I don’t anticipate anything happening but you just always have to be prepared for it.” (95.7 The Game)
• On if the Warriors can win the title with the current roster: “Yeah, 100%. That is absolutely something I believe.” (95.7 The Game)
• As we all heard, Kyrie Irving was the lede, asking for a trade before next week’s February 9th deadline. I wonder if this means the death of the “super-team”, not that those were easy to do in the past (really, it’s only been the LeBron James/Dwyane Wade/Chris Bosh Heatles and Kevin Durant/Irving/DeAndre Jordan), but superstar buddies going to some cool destination with cap space: probably done and overwith, right? Incidentally, I found the recap by Chris Haynes the most deserving explanation of Kyrie’s bombshell:
DISCLAIMER: These are all just notes for my main workflow of YouTube videos, mostly transcribed by me shortly after the interviews and during my coverage of postgame on our livestreams (!). Sometimes I’ll just use what’s tweeted by beatwriters, as listed. The links to the tweets are not available because sometimes I don’t use the full tweet and just having a ton of tweets on this website imo isn’t aesthetically pleasing and gets away from the main goal: transferring information (not so much entertainment) to the brains of DubNation asap.
0:00 • Steph Curry postgame locker room: “mostly optimistic in terms of who were capable of being… very aware of ‘we gotta figure some stuff out’… everybody including the vets, the core, need to play better, more consistently… some of the other questions around our rotations, our defensive mindset, just our focus on that front, we have to address that and continue to hold ourselves accountable but if everybody just raises their leave of play just a little bit, that’s why I’m optimistic. I feel like we can do that.”
• On the approaching trade deadline: “We do have to address certain issues with our team, whether it’s performance issues or just trying to find the right combinations, or whatever is going to get us to that place where we can string wins together and prove to ourselves we have what it takes to compete for a championship. Anything else is not to our standard. That’s what we’re all chasing.” (CJ Holmes)
• On Wiseman: “He’s out there trying to do the right things. I love his energy and approach to everything. It’s not easy what he’s being asked... Use (these experiences) as an opportunity to get better, more comfortable.” (CJ Holmes)
• Jonathan Kuminga postgame recap from locker room: “We have to keep going. At the end of the day we still feel good. We can still switch things up. I know it’s going to take a little minute, but as long as we stay together and stay positive we’re right there.” (CJ Holmes)
• Kevon Looney postgame recap from locker room: “Whenever we get a little momentum there’s a couple of setbacks and it’s frustrating. We know what it takes. We know the formula. We just have to go out there and execute.” (CJ Holmes)
2:50 • Mike Malone postgame recap: “Us and the Warriors are the two top first quarter scoring teams in the league.”
7:15 • Steph Curry is an all-time great player, arguably the best shooter to ever play the game, so over anybody, if you’re gonna try to emulate a player, that’s a pretty good guy to emulate… if he can steal some things from Steph — the best thing that Steph Curry does, for me, is his movement without the ball… we know he can dance and shoot from 35, 40 feet but I learned back in CYO basketball… New York… the most dangerous guy on the court is the guy who just passed the ball, because his guy relaxes and Steph has mastered that.. Jamal, as you see him getting healthier and stronger… running off those catch and shoot options… I love it that he has a let it fly mentally.”
12:15 • Jamal Murray postgame on if he studies Curry: “Yeah I watch film on Steph… how much he moves especially when he passes it. He relocates to the corner with those rocket screens — we call them rocket screens — and those guys are looking for him, especially Draymond when he’s out there… cool and quick way to get threes. Even when you give up the ball he’s still a threat, just like when Jokic and I give up the ball, I’m still a threat.”
• Steve Kerr postgame recap: “They showed why they’re the best team in the West.”
• On Wiseman playing more minutes: “Every game is different… we wanted to give guys a chance to play (after the b2b)… his calf tightened up on him (Draymond)… James (Wiseman) looked good… I like what we saw from our bench.”
• On Draymond calf issue: “The belief is it’s something minor but he’ll get it checked out when we get home.”
• On trying to neutralize Jokic: “the game changed in the third quarter… because we got back cut the weakside of our defense pulled in… every time he has the ball everybody’s a threat… he’s so good at finding anybody on the floor at anytime.”
0:00 Draymond Green is out, Steph Curry will play, Aaron Gordon is out (sprained ankle)
2:15 other stuff from our channel comments: gratitude, Wiseman, All-Star reserves
9:30 Draymond and Wiggins are not All-Stars, Jaren Jackson is, De'Aaron Fox; I don't have a problem with who they selected because they've always selected it that way
17:15 Jonathan Kuminga not chosen for Rookie-Sophomores; I'm sure Klay knocked on JK's door and said something to the effect of him getting snubbed
19:30 Lamb and Rollins are inactive tonight, Jerome is active fyi
22:30 we're not helping on Steph vs Concar post ups 7min45 Q1
34:30 2min06 Q1 Bruce Brown the x-factor for the Nuggets doing all the little things, faked out JaMychal Green -- also fyi Looney will have to match Jokic's minutes
37:00 0min14 Q1 JP follows up a bad 2-for-1 with a bad foul, typical of young guys
38:45 Bruce Brown making only MLE-level salary is a steal because he's worth GP2 level
42:00 Wiseman starts Q2!
48:00 on Wiseman not playing until now: the reason why we're small-ball is because Steve Kerr tried to wake up the Foundational Six and it actually worked starting with Boston, primarily with JP playing better defense. When you're small ball you have to be more locked in.
55:45 actual basketball coaches know and feel that risk and lack of trust playing Wiseman
1:03:00 4min08 Steph shin banged by MPJ, that's why I would wear UnderArmour or Nike Pro Combat all over
1:13:00 yes, starters gave up an 11-point lead, but that's when Jokic came in
1:17:00 it's only Wiggins' third game back (b2b as well) so I am not going to judge his play too much yet
1:27:00 11min29 Looney early 3rd foul vs Jokic, I kind of crazily don't mind him being in foul trouble because that would mean Wiseman would check in
1:35:30 four constants of DubNation: 1) Steph bad turnover, 2) JP bad turnover, 3) JK will be mad at a ref, 4) Wiggs will miss a free throw
1:38:00 6min52 Q3 Loon 4 fouls, Kerr goes with J-Mike vs Jokic
1:38:30 6min38 Q3 JK foul call, he doesn't like the call, do not let this spiral
1:40:00 Jokic just Harlem Globetrotter'ed (11 assists), but JP good job getting downhill
1:41:30 JP keeping us in it the last couple minutes
1:42:45 tonight if you're Wiggs or older, please take their performances with a grain of salt
1:47:00 3min30 we just saw an and-one on a free throw
1:48:00 2min34 Q3 Ty Jerome can't catch a pass, Donte with a bad foul and almost lost the ball as well, the lack of focus is a bit of a disease
1:51:00 ATO: Donte loses the ball completely to Christian Braun 1min34 Q3
1:54:30 JP executed a 2-for-1! 0min30 Q3
2:06:00 the one time Steph gets a 3-and-1 call, his left leg gets banged on 6min53
2:08:15 Blasian: "TheScore app said Steph was resting", WELL, let's not rely on that or BleacherReport for clickable news (as opposed to factual)
2:17:30 in a non-system such as the playground, Wiseman is an instant top pick, he has a great ability of covering guards on the perimeter
2:20:00 what's the NBA rulebook? A craps table. It's not really the refs, it's the laws they abide by (the foul by KCP was not ruled a take foul vs Jerome when it was for us a month ago). NBA ought to get rid of road b2b's because of NCAA-level games like tonight.
2:24:15 HOT TAKE: Steph and Dray subconsciously cannot take certain team seriously, but the good news is that the remainder of the schedule doesn't have a lot of those certain teams
2:49:00 (roughly) Dean Chambers comes on, we go long on the toxicity of Twitter and social media
KERR POSTGAME AUDIO
3:07:00 Dean says Steph's efficiency and passing have not been good since his shoulder injury, believes he's hurting
3:22:45 it is NOT "puzzling" that Wiseman is not playing (it's hard to trust youth)
3:38:15 how I would coach Kuminga the 20-year-old right now: focus the energy the right way (not to the refs)
3:43:30 Zamby: "That's the one thing I admire about Donte. He is so poised when he fouls and he is always focused. I can't even recall if he's had a bad game this season."
3:46:45 Roland: "James Sizeman is a space eater"
3:48:15 on having control over the Jerome and Lamb contracts
3:56:30 Dean waxes poetic on Steph
3:58:00 on the negative comments on this channel about Steph's voting on some Atherton low-income housing thing
[PREGAME VIDEO N/A]
• Steve Kerr at pregame Denver: “Expecting them to play,” Kerr said about Steph and Draymond for tonight's game, the second of a back-to-back vs Denver. Kerr said “there was a conversation” with Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Rick Celebrini this morning about whether to sit or not. Curry and Green said they felt good. Training staff data cleared them to play tonight vs Nuggets. They’ll go through warmups before an official decision is made. Klay Thompson out. (Kerith Burke, Kendra Andrews, Anthony Slater)
• Probable Warriors starters vs. Nuggets: Stephen Curry, Jordan Poole, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green, Kevon Looney. (CJ Holmes)
• On the trade deadline: “We just try to be really transparent about that… right when they get into the league… get to play basketball for a living… on the flip side you could get traded, cut, booed, injured… build something special… culture… where everybody feels valued and wanted but at the same time here’s how the business works.”
• The Warriors inactives are Iguodala, Lamb, Rollins and Thompson. Denver has Gillespie, Gordon (sprained left ankle) and White on their inactive list. (Tim Roye)
• Klay Thompson is out tonight in Denver on the second night of a back-to-back. Warriors currently listing Steph Curry (left shoulder soreness) and Draymond Green (right foot soreness) as questionable. Both played heavy minutes vs Wolves last night. (Anthony Slater and Warriors beatwriters)
• Draymond and Wiggs didn’t make the All-Star reserves, but quite honestly didn’t deserve it per the W-L record, not to mention Wiggins missed nearly the entire month of December (Paul George has missed a lot of games here and there but still has 37 games played compared to Wiggy’s 31) — yes, I’ve heard Wiggs being called “Wiggy” by a teammate, I can’t remember which one. As for Draymond, maybe this will help keep him a Warrior in some weird indirect way (?), to be optimistic about it. But if I’m picking guys up on the playground court, Dray will always be in my five. Also happy for the NBA in that all these guys are deserving. Congrats to Keith Smith, who was the first NBA journalist to tweet out the full roster of reserves as it was happening on TNT:
👍👍💛💙
UPDATE: Spencer Dinwiddie is available for tonight’s game at Golden State. (Mavs PR)