The Golden State Warriors agonizingly lost 145-144 to the Los Angeles Lakers in double overtime on Saturday night. After the game, a visibly frustrated Stephen Curry could be seen ripping his jersey as he walked off the court.
Curry had given his all on the court against the Lakers. His clutch 28-foot three-pointer had given the Warriors a 144-143 lead with 5.1 seconds remaining in the second overtime, but they weren’t able to hold on.Michael Malone Urges NBA To Investigate Joel Embiid’s Absence After Missing Nikola Jokic And Nuggets Matchup
LeBron James was fouled on the next play and sank two free throws to put the Lakers up with one second left. Curry’s desperation heave from his own half then fell well short, and as a result, the Warriors dropped to 19-24 on the season.
Frustrations are understandably growing with each defeat, and this was a second straight close loss for Golden State. The Warriors had just been beaten 134-133 on Wednesday night by the Sacramento Kings despite Curry scoring 33 points. In this one, the 35-year-old had 46 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, and 1 steal, but it still wasn’t enough. Curry ripping his jersey is not something we have seen very often. The clip went viral on social media, and NBA fans reacted to it.
One said Curry gave it his all out there and he doesn’t blame him for it.A fan said Curry has no help.One wildly said Curry is not a good leader.A fan thinks Curry will ask to be traded.One believes the Warriors dynasty is over for good.At this point, I think it’s safe to say it is indeed over for this core. The Warriors have proven their doubters wrong a fair few times over the years, like when they won the title in 2022, but they are done now.
Curry is still playing great, with averages of 27.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game this season, but this is not a team that can contend for a championship. The Warriors have some solid pieces around him, but still, this group is simply not talented enough to win it all.
The only way to extend this dynastic run would be to make some big trades, and we haven’t heard much on that front recently. Even if they do make significant changes now, I don’t think there would be enough time for a new group to gel together, so this will be a lost season for Golden State. While the Warriors are tumbling down, the Lakers are showing some signs of life. With this win, they are now 5-2 over their last seven games and have improved to 24-23 on the season.
While LeBron and Anthony Davis have shone during this recent good run, a lot of credit for it has to go to D’Angelo Russell as well. Ever since Russell was reintroduced into the starting lineup earlier this month, he has been on a tear. Against the Warriors here, he had 28 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals.
With him playing ever so well, you wonder whether the Lakers will still decide to trade him. Russell’s name is the one that has constantly come up in trade talks, but if he keeps this up, L.A. might have to seriously reconsider whether they want to part ways.
