SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors won a game in double-overtime without Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins and most of their front court depth. This would have been hard to believe a week ago.
Last week, the Warriors returned home from a 1-5 road trip without the star around which they orbit and little hope they’d have the resolve to piece together a win streak without him. Draymond Green pointed to a “fragile” mental state as the reason for their ineptitude.
But after Tuesday’s short-handed and long-winded win against the Atlanta Hawks, Green changed his tune.
“I think since I said that, we’re starting to build an MO. Which is being gritty, no matter the situation. This is a team that’s going to keep fighting,” Green said. “I don’t think this team had built an identity all year and we’re starting to build an identity. And it’s coming at a great time.”
The Warriors have won five straight. They won this one because of some spectacular performances: Klay Thompson’s 54-point, 10 3-pointer performance; Kevon Looney’s 20 rebounds and game-winning put-back at the buzzer; yet another Green defensive masterclass.
But they’re winning close games — four of their last five by five or fewer points — because of the calluses they’ve grown.
Down to a nine-man rotation, the Warriors didn’t succumb to adversity. After losing a 17-point halftime lead, they punched back. Twice.
With Curry expected back by the end of this home stand and the Warriors hanging in the balance between play-in threat and high-seed contender, this home stand could define the rest of their season. They came home injured, sick and a game below .500 set for an eight-game home stand against mostly tanking teams. They could have easily wilted, lazed and fallen into obscurity.
Not only have they stayed relevant, but they’re uncovering an identity. Without Curry to hide behind, the rest of the team is learning to brave the elements.
“Some of the things we’ve gone through the last five games, if they happened in game 10, everyone would be sulking and feeling sorry for themselves,” Green said, hanging his head to demonstrate. “You don’t see much of that anymore.”
Of course, as Green spoke with reporters, the cost of playing shorthanded showed. Green and four of the five starters (excluding Kevon Looney) played at least 44 minutes.
Green grunted and cursed his aching muscles as he got dressed at his locker. With JaMychal Green and James Wiseman out, Green is bearing the brunt of too many high-intensity, big-minute games. He’s got a sore back from it.
Remember that Green missed more than a month late last season with a back injury, though you won’t hear him complain despite the pained grunts.
“I’m paid to play basketball,” he said. “It is what it is, regardless of how I feel, it don’t matter. I gotta play and we gotta win.”
Green played 44:35 minutes. Thompson, Tuesday’s star, played nearly 46 minutes. With Jordan Poole shooting a relatively inefficient 11-for-31, the Warriors needed every second of that for Thompson’s hot hand.
“It’s going by so fast, we’re almost at the half way point,” Thompson said. “And after this year there’s only one year left on my deal. So I told myself I have to enjoy every day in a Warriors uniform.”
But Thompson has played nearly 40 minutes in the Warriors’ last four games. Though Thompson’s conditioning has improved significantly since the start of the season, his workload may become a concern considering the Warriors training staff is having him sit out in one half of every back-to-back to manage wear-and-tear on his surgically repaired ACL and Achilles.
The Warriors needed a little grit to climb back up to the top of the Western Conference. If they can get back up there, they can only hope the pains along the way don’t cost them a step.
