CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Golden State Warriors overcame the Charlotte Hornets 113-103 with a solid crunch-time effort. Although the stage was set for Stephen Curry, and he certainly performed, Kevin Durant (with 16 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter) and the defense stood out most in the final push.
At Golden State's morning shootaround, Steph's father, Dell, could be seen with a large stack of papers, figuring out all the logistics of who got into the highly anticipated homecoming. Curry has a lot of family, friends and admirers in the area. That was on display in two ceremonies the day before: a jersey retirement at Curry's high school and a student section named in his honor at Davidson.
"All two schools I played for, and the Warriors got a win," Curry summarized. "That's a solid trip."
This game was the final stop on Curry's whirlwind nostalgia tour, and he came out drawing oohs and ahhs from the friendliest of road crowds. He especially dazzled on a spin-move fake that left Kemba Walker in the air and led to a craftily spun layup through contact. Curry conjured last season's form on a couple off-the-dribble shots, seizing 10 points in the game's first seven minutes.
Then, oddly, Curry couldn't get the ball back for a spell as the offense sputtered. After the initial burst, Curry didn't shoot in the next three minutes and finished the quarter with 13 points. What could have been a rout turned into a competitive game that stretched into dangerous territory for the Dubs. Charlotte had nobody performing quite as brilliantly as Dion Waiters on Monday in Miami, though.
The game wasn't just a homecoming for the reigning, two-time MVP. It was the closest thing to a return for Virginia-born James Michael McAdoo, a former UNC star. Warriors coach Steve Kerr has traditionally been sensitive to players' homecomings, and he gave McAdoo a lot of run. "Mac" rewarded him with an inspired eight points and seven rebounds in his 20 minutes.
"He was amazing," Draymond Green said of his seldom-used teammate. "He really, really changed the tempo of the game. He had a lot of energy on the defensive end with all the switches. He was phenomenal for us."
Despite the best efforts of McAdoo, the game started to get away from Golden State in the third quarter, after the Warriors came out flat after halftime. They battled back on account of Curry's scoring eight points in a row and Green's playing fantastic defense. What was nearly a disaster turned into a five-point Charlotte lead heading into the final quarter.
While the Hornets found a spark from Marco Belinelli in the fourth (he scored nine points in the period and drew two dubious fouls), they couldn't find much offense elsewhere. Meanwhile, Durant was ablaze in the final quarter. Curry and Durant took turns down the stretch, with Curry occasionally setting off-ball, split-cut screens to open up Durant's jumper. Of note was Durant's ability to get to the line late, something Golden State's offense has lacked for years. The ability to manufacture points in an "ugly" fashion could pay big dividends on bigger stages.
On the other end, the Warriors were a switching storm, keyed by Green's aggression. The Warriors forced two late steals that helped turn crunch time into a sufficiently more relaxed span.
"I loved the defense to start the fourth quarter," Kerr said after the game. "I thought that group changed the game. McAdoo and Andre [Iguodala], Shaun Livingston, Klay [Thompson], and Draymond. The defense was fantastic, and we stepped up to the physical challenge that they were presenting."
The exclamation point was a Curry 3, after some dancing with the ball, in the face of Spencer Hawes. Although not a dominant performance for the local boy gone great, it was certainly good enough. Perhaps more importantly, it featured Curry's growing comfort with pull-up 3s that was absent in the early season.
A victory over the Hornets might be little to write home about, but it's an encouraging sign for a Warriors squad that has occasionally struggled late. In this game, when under pressure, the Warriors negotiated the Steph/KD dynamic optimally while rising to the occasion on defense.
Kerr said of Golden State's late-game execution Wednesday and its overall meaning, "It was great. The last couple, Miami was great too. We didn't win the game, but our execution was really good for the most part. I think it has been good for us. These last two games, they were played kind of the way teams are going to play us [in the playoffs]. Physical games, a lot of grabbing and holding, trying to beat us up on the offensive boards, and we have to understand that. We're a skill team, and teams are going to try to take that away from us by being physical, so it's been good for us the last couple games to feel that."
For Kerr's Warriors, these games aren't just games. Even a showcase centered around Curry's return has a greater purpose than thrilling the fans of North Carolina. These winter showdowns are really about what happens in the early summer.
With that future in mind, Golden State has lately, increasingly, looked ready for the big show.
