Winning an early December game typically isn’t much of a big deal for the Warriors, but Saturday was different.
Still stung by a heartwrenching last-second loss to the Utah Jazz the game prior, the defending NBA champions were motivated to shake off their bizarre start to the 2022-23 season with a clash against the Boston Celtics, the same team they faced six months ago in an intense six-game series in the 2022 NBA Finals.
The Finals rematch had the same result with the Warriors on top with a 123-107 victory at Chase Center.
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Warriors star Steph Curry explained after the game why the win was so significant.
“The competitor in you says these games obviously matter in terms of letting other champion-caliber teams know you’re a force to be reckoned with," Curry told reporters postgame. "And whatever happens down the stretch, if you match up, it’s going to be a tough series. But you understand if you lose, it’s not the end of the world but it does matter."
Curry (32 points) and Klay Thompson (34) put on a show, exploding for a game-high combined 66 points with Curry shooting 57.1 percent from the field and Thompson shooting 53.8 percent from the field. The Splash Bros combined for 10 triples.
The Warriors had been lacking an energy that was once again found on Saturday night. The leaders in the locker room knew how much this game meant and did what needed to be done to pull out the win.
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"These games matter in the sense of preparing yourself mentally for what playoff basketball is like and figuring out how to build as much of a presence in those types of games as possible," Curry said. "And you also have to assess the team as it stands, what do we have out there? How do the matchups go? Kind of foreshadow what a playoff series would look like. So it was a good feeling tonight to win a game like that."
It's December, but the energy inside Chase Center Saturday night felt like it was a playoff basketball game. Perhaps this was just the momentum the Warriors needed and will hope to carry with them on their upcoming six-game road trip.
