The Atlanta Hawks managed to beat Golden State on their home turf 111-124 on Sunday night at Chase Stadium.
This brought their record to 20-21, while the Warriors fell to 21-19. After the game, Stephen Curry shared his analysis of the loss and highlighted a key factor that led to the defeat.
Curry criticizes the Warriors’ lack of energy
Golden State started the fourth quarter with a deficit of more than 20 points, and if it weren’t for a slight and late comeback in the final stretches, the final difference would have been even greater.
Turnovers were one of the biggest problems the team had been struggling with, and they were unable to solve it against the Hawks. Added to this was a lack of rhythm, something their opponents did not hesitate to take advantage of.
After the game and at the press conference, Steph did not sugarcoat the situation and highlighted what went wrong.
“At the end of the second and third quarters, they created all the separation,” began ‘the Chef,’ adding: “They played well the whole game, they’re a young athletic team… They were excited to get out there, and it showed.”
The truth is that Atlanta has a much younger roster than the Warriors, with an average age of 23.8, and for Curry, the vitality, youth, and energy of his opponents made the difference. But that wasn’t the only thing: “You gotta credit their defense,” he admitted.
“They have a lot of athleticism, they like to switch a lot, a lot of off-ball actions weren’t necessarily right. In certain games, you can feel like you’re pressing if your ball’s not hopping around… So, we can obviously correct that, but they have a lot of… a really good defensive effort,” said Curry, 37.
Stephen led the Warriors with 31 points, being the top scorer for the team and the game. He was followed by Jimmy Butler, who added another 30 points, and De’Anthony Melton with 10.
On the other hand, Nickeil Alexander-Walker led Atlanta with 24 points. Jalen Johnson, Luke Kennard, and Onyeka Okongwu also stood out with 23, 22, and 18 points, respectively.
Meanwhile, Steph and the Warriors will return to action at home on Tuesday, January 13, against the Portland Trail Blazers.
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