Focused and disciplined, Warriors make a statement against Celtics in Boston

BOSTON — The Golden State Warriors defended their way back into the game in Boston on Wednesday night following a shaky start. They held the Celtics scoreless for a nearly six-minute stretch. They were up 37-33 with five minutes left in a low-scoring first half, winning because of focus and game plan discipline.

That’s when a defensive rebound bounced into Steph Curry’s hands following another stop. Jayson Tatum and Derrick White had retreated in transition. Kyle Anderson was a few steps ahead, enough that Curry felt he should attempt a low-percentage touchdown pass over the top. White tipped the pass into an easy steal.

“The hit-ahead pass to the other team?” Kerr smirked when reminded of the possession after the game.

Here’s the play.

Within seconds, the Celtics had turned a transition counterpunch into an open 3. It was a five-point swing, as Kerr called it, in a road game against the defending champs. The moment Curry threw the pass, Kerr yelped at the mistake. After the Celtics cashed in on it, he called timeout and lit into Curry with a fury.

Here’s the camera view of Kerr’s reaction from NBC:

Steve Kerr wasn’t happy with Steph Curry after this second-quarter turnover 😳 pic.twitter.com/SciAPNvNNQ

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) November 7, 2024

The Warriors went on to beat the Celtics 118-112, the signature win in their 7-1 stampede to open this season. There are a ton of positive sequences that delivered the result. Gary Payton II changed the game with his defensive activity. Anderson drilled three straight 3s when Joe Mazzulla had his Celtics sag off him. Moses Moody closed the first half on a 5-0 run. Kevon Looney had two fourth-quarter put-backs to keep the Warriors ahead. Buddy Hield sealed the win with a clutch corner 3.

But it was that Curry blunder and the aftermath that might best showcase why the Warriors appear to be in such a healthy state to open this season. Kerr, who those in the organization said entered Hawaii training camp with a level of demand and vigor they hadn’t seen the last couple of seasons, continues to harp on the details of winning basketball.

“This is a theme with our team,” Kerr said. “We can’t be the same team we were five or six years ago and give away five or six possessions in the name of creating chaos.”

When the Warriors had Kevin Durant — when their stars were in their primes — they could turn it over 20 times and still beat an opponent by 20 points. They had a margin for error that no longer exists, even if the hard-to-eliminate habits still do.

“Everyone else is playing fast and shooting 3s, too, these days,” Kerr said. “Boston shot 20 more 3s than we did in the second half. So it’s tough to win if you are giving away possessions. I’ve been all over Steph and Draymond. It’s incumbent upon them because they are our leaders and they’re the guys who handle the ball most. They gotta cut back on their bad decisions like that.”

That second-quarter turnover allowed Kerr to deliver Curry a loud reminder. One or two plays like that against the Celtics could be fatal.

“The beauty with Steph is he lets me yell at him, which sets the tone,” Kerr said. “He accepted it. He knew it.”

When asked about the interaction, Curry made sure to proudly remind that, “I didn’t have another turnover after that.”

“It’s a mindset that, one, I want to be coached just like everyone else,” Curry said. “I don’t get sensitive about getting yelled at if you make a dumb play. Especially because it led to a 3 on the other end. It’s avoidable. We have to be able to take care of possessions. Me and Draymond are going to have turnovers. We have the ball in our hands a lot, gonna take chances here and there. But there are turnovers like that where even if (Anderson) catches it, it’s a tough play.”

The stern lessons are making an impact on their newer teammates. In the third quarter, Hield let Tatum go right when the game plan demanded they force him left. There was a foul. There was a whistle. There was a discussion that included Jonathan Kuminga and Green and new defensive coordinator Jerry Stackhouse.

There was some frustration. But later in the game, when Hield was on the floor for his shooting and scoring, the Celtics targeted him in switches to get Tatum against him. He held up better against the attack and funneled him into help better, following the game plan rules. On the other end, it paid off. Hield had a huge layup and a backbreaking 3 in crunch time.

“Stack is on me. Draymond is on me. Everybody’s on me,” Hield said. “I’m just learning from them and building championship habits. That’s what they’re always preaching. Championship habits … (It’s about) being detail-oriented and having no brain farts.

Curry tried to downplay the win after the game, saying they’ve “done nothing.” No four-time champion is going to overreact eight games into an 82-game regular season. But this win felt validating for the Warriors’ veterans and decision-makers, a sign that this hot start (which followed an encouraging preseason) had some substance to it.

“What do you think?” Hield said. “It’s a statement. If we don’t win, everybody says, ‘Oh, they ain’t played nobody.’ You gotta come make a statement, right?”

Hield scored another 16 points off the bench. Looney’s 10 rebounds in 16 minutes included the two biggest offensive rebound put-backs of the night. Payton had an acrobatic fourth-quarter steal that appeared to turn momentum and, as he scrambled for the loose ball, Kerr bounced off the bench with some juice to call a smart timeout. Both Looney and Payton look much better physically this season, providing Curry with the type of supplementary help that’s allowed him to ease into the season.

This was the first time Curry has eclipsed 30 minutes in a game. He didn’t need to appear in the fourth quarter of the Portland and Utah blowouts to open the season, sprained his ankle in the third game, missed the next three and had a 24-minute restriction in Washington, D.C., on Monday night.

But with the competition cranked up and the rotation around him providing a realistic shot to get a road win in Boston, Curry turned it up in the second half and Kerr (and Rick Celebrini) gave him the green light for 34 minutes. He had 27 points, four steals and nine assists, including the drive and location of Hield for that corner 3 right in front of controlling owner Joe Lacob, who double fist-pumped when the win was clinched.

(Top photo of Steph Curry driving to the basket against Derrick White and Al Horford: Adam Glanzman / Getty Images)