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SAN FRANCISCO — As Warriors forward Draymond Green walked off the court, he made sure the officiating staff could still hear him.
Midway through the second quarter of the Warriors’ 116-86 loss to the Lakers on Thursday at Chase Center, Green was called for his fourth foul when he was knocked over by Dwight Howard on a screen.
He unleashed a verbal assault on a pair of officials — first at Marat Kogut and then at Tyler Ford — and was promptly ejected from the game. The obscenities continued as he disappeared into the team tunnel.
Even when the Warriors (12-47) aren’t playing for much more than lottery position, losing eight-straight games has the team frustrated. Without Green, Golden State unraveled in a decisive third quarter.
“We needed him in the second half,” head coach Steve Kerr of Green. “We missed him out there.”
Down by only two at halftime, the Warriors gave up a nine-point lead to start the third, and forward Marquese Chriss earned a technical foul of his own when he argued an offensive foul with crew chief Ken Mauer.
Moments later, the Lakers used an 11-0 run, capped off by forward Kyle Kuzma’s transition dunk, to take a 21-point lead.
In all, Golden State was outscored 40-17 in the third quarter, as the Lakers made 16-of-23 shots while the Warriors missed 13 of their 19 shots and committed seven turnovers.
“Tonight was a step backwards in the second half,” Kerr said. “We understand where we are record-wise, but we still have a standard that we have to play to.”
All of Golden State’s starters — except for guard Jordan Poole, who briefly exited the game midway through the third quarter with an ankle injury — recorded at least four fouls.
The Warriors’ frustrations were exacerbated by a free-throw discrepancy that helped decide the game. The Lakers went 18-for-27 from the free throw line, while the Warriors attempted only 10 free throws, making nine.
However, more than that contributed to the Warriors’ loss. Poor shooting (8-for-24 from 3-point range), careless turnovers (27 that led to 24 Lakers’ points) and worse rim protection (60 points in the paint allowed) resulted in the Warriors’ 23rd loss in the last 26 games.
Though the Warriors were without forward Andrew Wiggins, acquired in a trade with the Timberwolves earlier this month, the Lakers were without forward LeBron James. James’ absence may have presented an opportunity for this make-shift roster.
There were some encouraging performances. Rookie forward Eric Paschall had 23 points on 7-for-14 shooting (8-for-9 from the free-throw line) and accounted for nearly all of his team’s free throws, while Poole finished with 14 points on 6-for-12 shooting and eight assists in 30 minutes after returning at the start of the fourth quarter.
For the Lakers (45-12), forward Anthony Davis went for 23 points on 6-for-13 shooting and six rebounds in 25 minutes before sitting the entire fourth quarter.
An improvement in the mood of the team may be on the way, as Stephen Curry is set to be evaluated Friday and could make his return as soon as Sunday, when the Warriors face the Wizards at Chase Center.
Before then, Golden State will play the Suns in Phoenix on Saturday.
“If you look at our record, I feel like we definitely need a win,” Paschall said. “We’re still working to get better every day and we are just going to try to continue to push to get a few wins.”
A few more thoughts…
1. In his first game since signing a 10-day contract with the Warriors on Thursday, guard Mychal Mulder did little to impress in the first 22 minutes of his NBA career.
The 25-year-old from Windsor, Ontario, who spent the last three seasons in the G League finished with two points on 1-for-6 shooting and, more notably, missed all five of his 3-point attempts.
This is someone who was signed because of his shot-making ability. In 39 games with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Mulder shot 39.7% from 3-point range on 9.7 attempts.
Over the next week and a half with the Warriors, Mulder will have five more games to prove he’s worth another 10-day contract, after which he can either be released or signed to a prorated minimum deal for the rest of the season.
“I was talking to (Kerr) a little about my role, and he expects me to shoot the ball,” Mulder said Thursday afternoon. “Honestly, whatever role these guys want me in, I’m happy to do it — whether it’s shoot the ball, make plays for others or wave a towel.”
2. In the final minutes of this 30-point loss, Ky Bowman rolled his ankle on a layup attempt. After falling to the court in obvious pain, his teammates helped carry him off into the locker room.
“It’s not going to be a day-to-day thing,” Kerr said. “He’s going to be out a little bit.”
Bowman will not attend the team’s trip to Phoenix for Saturday’s game, and will instead undergo an MRI on Friday.
https://twitter.com/Kevin__Chow/status/1233271451295219712?s=20
3. With tonight’s ejection, Green is up to 14 techs this season. Two more, and he earns a suspension.
(Three of the five ejections in Chase Center history are by Green.)
In his first game back after missing the last two with a right pelvic contusion, he played just 10 minutes Thursday, giving him 10 minutes of total playing time over an eight-day span.
In looking for positives, that isn’t the worst thing during a season in which they are trying to manage his minutes.
Draymond got ejected in the 2Q… the Lakers bench had the perfect reaction 😂 pic.twitter.com/aLxDQnj07K
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 28, 2020
4. Not that there was any doubt this would be the case, but Thursday’s loss makes it mathematically official: The Warriors have protected the first-round pick traded to the Brooklyn Nets in the D’Angelo Russell sign-and-trade. They will instead convey their 2025 second-round pick.
