SAN FRANCISCO — Without Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins and De’Anthony Melton, the Warriors’ depth had a chance to prove that this roster is built to withstand absences like the organization believes.
It took a roundabout way for them to get there, but they proved there’s merit to that theory.
After falling behind by 20 points early in the game, the Warriors settled in and won the middle quarters 73 to 48. Buddy Hield scored 25 of his team-high 28 points in the second half. Brandin Podziemski (19 points, five assists, three rebounds) played an excellent floor game. Lindy Waters III dropped 21 points in 30 bench minutes, hauling in a career-high nine boards. And Jonathan Kuminga, who came off the bench, chipped in 17 points, three rebounds and three assists, providing thump in the second half.
Golden State’s defense forced the Pelicans into difficult shots — which Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson often made — and a myriad of live-ball turnovers. Golden State logged 14 steals and forced 22 turnovers overall, dominating the possession game.
As five Warriors (3-1) finished in double figures, the Pelicans were far too predictable. Ingram and Williamson combined for 61 points, but no other Pelican scored more than seven points. Golden State’s depth won out in a 124-106 victory — the team’s first win at Chase Center this year.
Golden State started Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Moses Moody, Draymond Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis, notably bringing Kuminga off the bench.
“This is why we have a deep team,” Steve Kerr said pregame. “This is the point. To be able to withstand injuries and absences. Obviously, tonight is pretty extreme. To have two starters out and a guy who comes off the bench quickly (out), that’s pretty rare. We feel like we’re built for it, but we’ve got to go prove that.”
The Warriors’ starters looked stout defensively, particularly Moody guarding Brandon Ingram, but fell into a quick hole anyway. Kuminga, upon checking in, provided four quick points, cutting New Orleans’ early lead to 18-14.
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But Golden State didn’t score for the rest of the quarter, a 4:52 drought. Kuminga appeared to force the issue at times. The aimless offenses allowed the Pelicans to go on a 13-0 run and take a 17-point lead after one period.
Without Curry, Golden State started 5-for-23 from the field and 2-for-13 from behind the arc.
Losing Curry is different than missing any other player. The Warriors revolve their identity around Curry’s 3-point shooting and constant moving. He’s their engine with or without the ball. Golden State went 3-5 without Curry last season and has an all-time record of 84-147 (.364) in games he has missed since he entered the league.
Still, the Warriors turned the game around in the second quarter by ramping up the defense. Waters provided instant offense off the bench, scoring nine points in his first 11 minutes. Kuminga settled in after a choppy start. Golden State collected seven steals in the second quarter alone.
Golden State won the period, 33-20. During the comeback, Podziemski showed why the organization covets him. He found Gary Payton II in the corner for 3 with an extra pass one possession and sank a floater from the elbow in the next. Then, he jumped a passing lane while playing on-ball defense, dove on the floor for the loose ball and tossed an advance pass up the court from the hardwood for an assist.
As Payton slammed his pass for a fast-break dunk, Podziemski slapped the court in celebration. It was one of 15 Pelicans turnovers the Warriors forced, and two of 18 points they scored off said turnovers in the first half.
Waters earned the start in the second half, replacing Buddy Hield — who went 1-for-8 in the first two periods. The sharp-shooter instantly drilled a 3 to open the third quarter, inching the Warriors within one.
That lineup had the ball movement flowing. One play, Waters passed up a good look to Moody, who drove a closeout and found Podziemski in the corner, who had replaced him. Later, Waters drilled his third 3 of the game to give the Warriors their first lead since the opening minutes, and Moody sliced down the baseline for a layup to force a Pelicans timeout right after.
Moody was open because two Pelicans closed out to Waters in transition. The former Thunder guard had 17 points in as many minutes at that point; the Warriors won those minutes by 13.
When Kuminga checked back into the game, he made a massive impact. The rejection on the defensive end into a lob to Jackson-Davis for a fast-break dunk was his best play of the season. That was sandwiched by two buckets — a left-handed layup and an off-the-bounce trey.
Hield unthawed to lift the Warriors with a pair of 3s in the waning minutes of the third quarter. Golden State won the third quarter 40-28, completely flipping the game and taking an 87-79 lead into the fourth.
Then Hield opened it with a fourth triple, elevating off one dribble. Hield had gone 3-for-18 after his scorching start to the season, but it didn’t take long for him to heat back up. He added a 30-footer over New Orleans’ 2-3 zone and a fast-break layup off a Waters steal.
With both Hield and Waters sharing the court and shooting like they did Tuesday, the Warriors could viably play Kuminga with both Green and Kyle Anderson.
The Warriors are using the start of the season — and the suboptimal circumstances — to find lineup combinations that work. That group expanded their lead. Kuminga’s gliding, two-handed reverse dunk off a steal put the Warriors up 101-88 five minutes into the fourth.
Hield’s sixth triple — a quick-release from the corner off a Waters shovel pass — gave the Warriors a 106-94 lead. His seventh, with 2:43 left, capped an 8-2 run from there and had Curry screaming from the bench.
Any time Ingram or Williamson made a contested shot, Golden State responded. It was a two-headed monster versus a democratized attack.
And as the Warriors theorized, their quality of quantity came out on top.