The Golden State Warriors let a 17-point lead slip in a 114-101 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night at Chase Center, and head coach Steve Kerr pointed to fouls, fatigue and offensive stagnation as turning points.
Golden State led by 14 at halftime before being outscored 63-44 in the second half.
“Well, they were great in the second half,” Kerr said. “We played a fantastic first half. Our defense was excellent. We were flying around and getting some good shots and we didn’t foul.”
The Warriors limited Los Angeles to six free throws in the first half but allowed 12 in the third quarter.
“So we had a lot of pace and they got 12 free throws in the third quarter,” Kerr said. “So the game slowed down and we had to play in the half court and they were really good defensively in that second half.”
Kerr added that Yanic Konan Niederhauser “really controlled the paint and we just couldn’t get anything to go.”
Kawhi Leonard finished with 23 points, eight rebounds and four assists, and the Clippers erased a 17-point deficit.
“Kawhi Leonard has been probably the best player in the league the last month,” Kerr said. “They made a couple of adjustments to get him the ball in different spots. And he got going.”
The Warriors were without Stephen Curry for an 11th straight game and played without Kristaps Porzingis due to illness. Kerr acknowledged the challenge of sustaining defensive intensity with a short rotation.
“It’s tough to sustain that kind of effort for 48 minutes when you’re severely undermanned,” he said. “You have to generate that energy defensively to try to create some offense out of it.”
Golden State shot 39% from the field and 17-for-48 from 3-point range. Brandin Podziemski scored 22 points but had just two after halftime.
Draymond Green was a minus-18 in 31 minutes. Kerr credited the veteran forward for the early tone.
“I thought Draymond’s effort and energy defensively set the tone for the whole first half,” Kerr said. “He was all over the place.”
When Green went to the bench late in the third, the Clippers surged.
“He’s still one of the great defenders in the league,” Kerr said. “But yeah we had to get him out. You know, he can’t play the whole game and he played 31 minutes, which is a lot for him at this stage.”
Kerr also provided an update on Moses Moody, who left after a fall.
“He jammed his wrist from the fall there,” Kerr said. “Yeah, shooting hand and he also hurt his shoulder during the game, but no update. So we’ll just see see how he’s doing tomorrow.”
