Final thoughts
The Warriors can still set the all-time wins record if they win their next three games: tomorrow on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies, Sunday on the road against the Spurs (who may or may not be resting players by this point, now that the No1 seed looks highly unlikely) and the regular season finale at home against the Grizzlies next Wednesday. Will they pull it off? Stay tuned here at the Guardian as we continue to cover the end of the regular NBA season. That will do it for tonight’s Spurs/Warriors liveblog, thanks to everybody who followed along with us tonight, especially those of you who contributed! Ciao!
Warriors win!
Spurs 101-112 Warriors, FINAL
The Spurs are still playing though. West makes a layup. Martin makes a shot, gets fouled and hits the and one. That just makes the final score a bit more respectable as the game comes to an end. The Warriors win!
Spurs 95-112 Warriors, 1:14, 4th quarter
Rush, Speights, Ian Clark, Barbosa and Livingston are now in the game, as Kerr pulls out the starters to the accompaniment of rapturous applause.
Spurs 95-112 Warriors, 2:18, 4th quarter
Steph Curry with a 25-foot three. Okay that will probably do it.
Spurs 95-109 Warriors, 2:47, 4th quarter
Ginobili replaces Leonard. Martin replaces Parker. Pop starting to rest his starters? Well, Kyle Anderson makes a nice fadeaway jumper so maybe the Spurs aren’t totally dead yet.
Spurs 93-109 Warriors, 3:11, 4th quarter
David West gets to the line, makes one of two. Not ideal for San Antonio. Danny Green blocks an Iguodala layup, which he Spurs needed, but Thompson gets a layup to roll in and the Spurs take a timeout.
Spurs 92-107 Warriors, 4:05, 4th quarter
Golden State probably have to tell themselves to slow down a bit, which is not a gear that comes naturally to them. Both teams play great defense in the minute after the timeout, which obviously plays into the Warriors’ plans. Aldridge fouls Curry to put him on the line, he makes both.
Spurs 92-105 Warriors, 5:16, 4th quarter
Aldridge makes a layup, and was fouled as he was headed to the basket. He makes the free throw. Draymond makes a layup, Kawhi makes a three and.. Kyle Anderson, who has been sneaky good this game, adds two points to the San Antonio total. With the Spurs making something approximating a run, the Warriors take a full timeout
Spurs 84-103 Warriors, 7:09, 4th quarter
Leonard gets to the line, makes two free throws.
That’s all the good news the Spurs gets in this stretch, Livingston makes a dunk and Draymond makes a three and Oracle, which has been waiting to truly erupt all game, gets LOUD.
Spurs 82-98 Warriors, 8:07 4th quarter
Ginobili hits another jumper, the Spurs are sticking around at least, but the clock’s starting to be a concern now. Speights gets to the line and he gets those two points right back.
Spurs 80-96 Warriors, 8:30, 4th quarter
Ginobili finds West, who knocks down a two-footer. Speights misses a jumper. West hits another shot on the other end. This might be a game again soon.
Oh, no, Harrison Barnes hits another three-pointer. Nevermind.
Spurs 76-93 Warriors, 9:29, 4th quarter
Livingston knocks down a shot, but the red hot Mills makes a two-pointer. Bonner is then called for a foul that puts Barnes on the line, he makes both of his free throws. San Antonio calls a timeout.
Spurs 74-89 Warriors, 10:32, 4th quarter
A five point run from Patty Mills makes it a 15 point game.
Spurs 69-89 Warriors, 11:33, 4th quarter
The Timberwolves beat the Kings 105-97, meaning this is the only game still going on. Of course, it was the only game that mattered at all since it started.
Mo Speights makes a jumper to start the fourth quarter scoring.
Spurs 69-87 Warriors, end of the 3rd quarter
Iguodala and Ginobili trade baskets and then, (breathes out) the quarter finally ends.
Spurs 67-85 Warriors, :38, 3rd quarter
Ezeli gets a shot and an “and one,” which ends up being an “and none” when he misses the free throw. Ginobili makes a layup for the Spurs. Draymond Green makes a layup. David West makes a jumper. Curry adds a two-pointer to his total.
More happened in that burst of time than like the entire first quarter, it felt like.
Spurs 63-79 Warriors, 1:53, 3rd quarter
Festus Ezeli adds to the dunk contest. Matt Bonner, who is in the game, makes a tough shot. The Spurs are scoring but they need some more stops here.
And just like that, Bonner steals a bad pass from Curry. The Spurs get a three-pointer from a suddenly rejuvenated Martin.
Spurs 58-77 Warriors, 3:06, 3rd quarter
Kevin Martin makes a layup close to the basket. Okay. But Curry makes another shot.
And then gets called for a foul that puts David West on the line, West makes both.
Spurs 54-75 Warriors, 3:33, 3rd quarter
Out of the timeout, Bogut hits a monster slam, without even getting a running start.
And Barbosa gets called for a foul to put Kevin Martin on the line, he makes both.
But Steph Curry gets those points right back with a layup. 11 points just this quarter for Curry.
Spurs 52-71 Warriors, 4:35, 3rd quarter
Fans start with a “WARRIORS” chant, but that doesn’t help as Leonard hits a shot to stop the Warriors run. Then Bogut gets charged for his fifth foul, which negates a Warriors score and gives the ball back to San Antonio.
But Parker misses. But Draymond Green gives the ball back up, where Aldridge hands back to Leonard who somehow lays it in despite being almost-fouled. Steph Curry calls a timeout.
Spurs 48-71 Warriors, 6:22, 3rd quarter
Every picture of Gregg Popovich looks like it should be captioned "Miracle! Hiker found after 30 years".
— MCandFriends (@MCandFriends) April 8, 2016
Right-handed dunk by Bogut, set up by Curry. Curry with a block... and then a missed three-pointer.
Thompson-to-Barnes for a basket and Oracle gets very, very loud.
Spurs 48-67 Warriors, 7:31, 3rd quarter
Bogut fouls Parker to prevent him from an easy basket, and makes one of two.
Aaaand Curry his a three-pointer. The Spurs take a timeout, this one might be getting out of hand.
Spurs 47-64 Warriors, 8:04, 3rd quarter
Aldridge gets his own rebound and taps it back in, but can’t defend a Curry teardrop on the other end.
Spurs 45-62 Warriors, 9:04, 3rd quarter
@HunterFelt Can't watch game (at work) but keen to know your thoughts on: Are the Spurs in Playoff mode or still Reg Season coasting?
— Mike or The Don (@mikeorthedon) April 8, 2016
The Spurs definitely aren’t playing this like a playoff game, but they’re definitely not coasting. They want to win this game, but they’re not as motivated as the Warriors seem to be. Nor should they be, honestly.
Left hand layup by Curry and the Warriors have their largest lead.
Spurs 45-60 Warriors, 9:26, 3rd quarter
Thompson fouls Parker, who makes one of two free throws.
Parker gets called for a foul on Draymond Green, who makes both. Green drives into the lane for a dunk and the Warriors quickly push their lead back up to 15 points and San Antonio has to take a timeout!
Spurs 44-56 Warriors, 10:19, 3rd quarter
Bogut tips in a Klay Thompson jumper.
Parker responds with a shot of his own. Curry responds to Parker’s response with a 13-footer.
Start of the second half!
Spurs 42-52 Warriors, 11:19, 3rd quarter
LaMarcus Aldridge is back and he knocks down a shot to start the second half scoring and cut the Golden State lead to 10.
Email from Ishi Garcia:
no way gsw can break them bulls record.
GSW will lose today, there can only be one 72-10 and that’s the bulls!!!
all the way from the philippines!!!peace..
I think the Warriors win tonight, but I agree. I think they’ll tie that 72-10 record, not beat it.
Email from Harry Hohnen:
Hey man,
enjoying your coverage. Do you think it is plausible that Spurs could win against GS over a final series?
thanks,harry
I absolutely think it’s possible for the Spurs to beat the Warriors in a playoff series, especially if they have home court advantage. Which is why it would be really important for them to win tonight and make that nearly impossible for them to win.
Harrison Barnes in first 2 games combined vs Spurs: 12 Pts
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 8, 2016
Harrison Barnes at halftime tonight: 14 Pts pic.twitter.com/hQtLIFGLJf
Okay, this might also be another factor into why the Warriors are looking somewhat better this go around with the Spurs.
For those who are interested, degenerate gamblers and draft lottery watchers I assume, the Timberwolves have a 77-76 lead over the Sacramento Kings with about a minute left to go in the third quarter.
Oh, and also, if anybody has any comments on this game, or anything about the end of the NBA season, feel free to keep me company by sending off an email to Hunter.Felt@theguardian.com or tweeting @HunterFelt.
Halftime thoughts
The Warriors look to be in control, especially on the defensive end, but they have continued to play rather sloppy, which is what doomed them in their unexpected losses to the Boston Celtics and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Steve Kerr cannot be happy right now, they have given San Antonio multiple opportunities to hurt them.
End of the first half
Spurs 40-52 Warriors, :50, end of the first half
Another three-pointer from Barnes makes it a 12 point Warriors lead heading into halftime.
Spurs 40-49 Warriors, :50, 2nd quarter
Draymond Green throws a terrible pass, picked off by Leonard. On the other end of the floor, Leonard gets his own defensive rebound off a miss and knocks in the second chance opportunity.
Barnes makes a three pointer for Golden State to cut off the Spurs’ run.
Spurs 38-46 Warriors, 1:31, 2nd quarter
Kevin Martin is in the game for San Antonio. Of course, Kevin Martin is playing for San Antonio.
Danny Green steals a bad pass from Curry. And Martin then sets him up for an easy three that gets Kerr to call another timeout, a full one this time.
Spurs 35-46 Warriors, 1:54, 2nd quarter
It feels like the rise of Curry/Thompson has made us forget a little bit about Danny Green’s ability to hit three pointers. He just displayed why that’s a mistake:
Danny Green nails his 2nd triple of the night! @NBAonTNT #NBARapidReplay #SASatGSW https://t.co/7CE8ya6nrD
— NBA (@NBA) April 8, 2016
Spurs 35-46 Warriors, 1:54, 2nd quarter
Parker gets a wide-open shot. And then Barnes somehow makes one while being guarded by Leonard. This game is definitely looking like a better one for Golden State than the last one.
Except that Danny Green then immediately hits a three-pointer. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr takes a 20 second timeout.
Spurs 30-44 Warriors, 3:13, 2nd quarter
Bogut passes to Thompson, who makes a three-pointer. On the next possession, however, Bogut fouls Leonard. The Warriors are over the limit, so Leonard gets to the free throw line. He makes one of two.
Spurs 29-41 Warriors, 4:20, 2nd quarter
The Spurs get an extra point without doing anything, as they reviewed one of Leonard’s 2-pointers and figured out it should have been a three. And Tony Parker makes a shot, to cut into that Warriors lead a little bit more.
Except that Steph Curry increases his streak of games with at least one three-pointer to push that Warriors lead back up.
The brilliance of Kawhi Leonard, summed up here https://t.co/BlC2jXKXxb
— Andrew Jerell Jones (@sluggahjells) April 8, 2016
Spurs 26-38 Warriors, 5:43, 2nd quarter
..And Draymond scores again.
But then the Warriors and Spurs both go on scoring spurts. Leonard makes his shot, that’s answered by Golden State’s Marreesse Speights. Leonard makes another shot, draws the foul and makes the “and one.”
And then both teams go cold once again. Warriors take a full timeout.
Spurs 21-34 Warriors, 8:17, 2nd quarter
Then Kyle Anderson immediately fouls Thompson, who makes both free throws.
Leonard responds by making a shot of his own..
...but Green hits a three pointer. They’re not making up any distance here.
Spurs 19-29 Warriors, 8:51, 2nd quarter
CORRECTION: Earlier I said that the Bulls have been eliminated. This is not true. They have a chance to make the playoffs if they win out. So they technically are “just about to be eliminated,” my apologies.
We come back to this game with Leonard on the free throw line, he makes one of two.
Spurs 18-29 Warriors, 8:51, 2nd quarter
Kyle Anderson finally ends the Warriors’ unanswered scoring run, making a layup AND he gets fouled on the way. He makes the plus one.
And Thompson gets called for a foul on Leonard. San Antonio takes a timeout.
Spurs 15-29 Warriors, 9:37, 2nd quarter
The good news is that the Warriors are playing physical defense, the bad news is that the whistles are going against them. Barbosa and Livingston pick up fouls within seconds of each other.
But, offensively, the Warriors are looking like, well, the Warriors. Thompson hits a shot and Draymond Green makes a dunk and it’s a 14-0 run.
Spurs 15-25 Warriors, 11:00, 2nd quarter
And Shaun Livingston dunks! Make it a 10-0 run for Golden State.
Spurs 15-23 Warriors, 11:34, 2nd quarter
Much more of a defensive battle than what I was expecting so far. This might end up being a low-scoring affair.
And as I type this Brandon Rush hits a three-pointer for the Warriors.
Spurs 15-20 Warriors, end of the 1st quarter
Steph Curry gets around David West and makes a shot. Patty Mills misses a three pointer. Curry throws up a prayer from the other side of the court as the buzzer goes off and it... hits the rim. Could have made the building explode had he made it, and making it is always a possibility with him.
Spurs 15-18 Warriors, :32, 1st quarter
Leandro Barbosa with the three!
And then a bunch of missed shots. Such a weird, disjointed game so far.
Spurs 15-15 Warriors, 1:49, 1st quarter
Several missed shots here towards the end of the fist quarter, until David West assists Tim Duncan for layup that ties up the game.
Spurs 13-15 Warriors, 2:09, 1st quarter
Reports are that Aldridge may have dislocated a finger. That’s probably not what Popovich wanted to hear after making the decision to play all of his starters this time. (“The ONE time I don’t do it.)
The second unit players have made their way to the floor here in the meantime.
Spurs 13-15 Warriors, 3:11, 1st quarter
A two-pointer from Curry puts the Warriors back ahead...
Oof, it looks like Aldridge is hurt after a block by Bogurt, he’s holding his hand. They will look at it while the Warriors take a timeout.
Spurs 13-13 Warriors, 3:48, 1st quarter
Barnes makes a basket but Duncan tips in his own missed layup on the other end.
Klay Thompson takes a jumper to increase the lead but Danny Green ties it up with a three-pointer.
Spurs 8-9 Warriors, 5:47, 1st quarter
Bogut throws to Iguodala for a layup. Four quick points for Golden State.
But Aldridge makes a steal and, after some solid ball movement from the Spurs, gets the ball back for a jumper.
Spurs 6-7 Warriors, 7:13, 1st quarter
Iguodala strips the ball from Leonard. Barnes with a slam on the other end! THAT gets the crowd going.
Spurs 6-5 Warriors, 7:26, 1st quarter
Warriors pick up a delay of game violation, yet another team foul. The Spurs have none.
And Barnes fouls Aldridge and the Spurs take another timeout. So far Golden State has been playing sloppy.
Spurs 6-5 Warriors, 7:52, 1st quarter
Shot clock violation on the Warriors, gets the ball back to San Antonio where Kawhi Leonard makes a super-tough shot for the early lead.
And then a technical foul on Green. Leonard misses the free throw though, so the score remains the same. The Warriors bring in Andre Iguodala to replace a clearly heated Green.
Spurs 4-5 Warriors, 9:23, 1st quarter
LaMarcus Aldridge hits a jump shot, but Harrison Barnes responds with one of his own. Draymond Green picks up his first foul here, which might be worth watching.
Spurs 2-3 Warriors, 10:59, 1st quarter
Tony Parker makes the first basket of the game, Klay Thompson, left open by Danny Green, responds with a three-pointer... that annoys Gregg Popovich enough that he calls a timeout only a minute into the game.
Opening tip
Spurs get the ball!
Golden State Warriors starting lineup
The Warriors will have Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green, Andrew Bogut, Klay Thompson, Steph Curry. They have their full lineup available as well, which they didn’t during their last loss against San Antonio.
San Antonio Spurs starting lineup
Alright, that means the main feature is starting shortly. Opening lineups are being announced:
The Spurs: Kawhi Leonard, LaMarcus Aldridge, Tim Duncan, Danny Green and Tony Parker. Yep, full lineup.
And the Miami Heat beat the Chicago Bulls 106-98. The Heat keep up with the Celtics and the Hawks, while the Bulls...
The Chicago Bulls have officially been eliminated from playoff contention pic.twitter.com/jKnZGPDAHV
— Complex Sports (@Complex_Sports) April 8, 2016
And the Suns beat the Rockets 124-115. Houston is not mathematically eliminated but they are common-sense-ly eliminated.
And the Hawks beat the Raptors 95-87, allowing them to stay put in the No3 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Predictions
I suppose this would be a good time to make my predictions. I’ve been thinking for awhile now that the Warriors will end their season exactly at 72-10, because that’s pretty much the most deflating scenario possible. I do, however, think the game they lose will be the one at AT&T. The Warriors win tonight, but it won’t be easy. It will be a one possession game with like 30 seconds left, I’m fairly confident on this.
Your thoughts? Email them to Hunter.Felt@theguardian.com or tweet them to @HunterFelt.
In the Western Conference, the Houston Rockets are also hoping to stay in the playoff hunt with a win over the miserable Phoenix Suns tonight. Also, the Minnesota Timberwolves and Sacramento Kings just tipped off, but since that game only matters in terms of potential lottery chances, there’s no much reason to focus on it.
We’ve still got some time before the Warriors and Spurs tip off. Right now, the Atlanta Hawks are minutes away of pulling off a big victory over the Toronto Raptors. Meanwhile, here on TNT, the Chicago Bulls are trying to keep their postseason changes alive by beating the Miami Heat at home. Compared to the West, there’s not a lot settled in the Eastern Conference.
Preamble
What, a liveblog of a regular season NBA game? Does this game between the Golden State Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs really fall under the category of liveblog worthy?
Absolutely, yes.
The big story here, obviously, lies in the 69-9 Warriors’ quest to surpassing the 72-10 record of the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls. Thanks to a shocking overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday, their chances of setting a new record are growing slimmer. Should they lose tonight, the best they would be able to do would be to tie the record, and even then they would still need to win the rest of their games. One of those games would be against the Spurs at AT&T Center where San Antonio is undefeated. (The Warriors were undefeated at Oracle until the Boston Celtics beat them there on Friday.)
The 65-12 Spurs also happen to be in the midst of one of the best seasons in NBA history, and still have an outside chance at stealing away the No1 seed away from the Warriors. To do that, San Antonio almost certainly has to win tonight. So, the Warriors aren’t just playing for the abstract glory of having the best winning record ever, but for the very real prize of securing home field advantage throughout the playoffs (i.e. should they meet up with the Spurs in the postseason, which seems inevitable at this point).
So this won’t have a feel of a regular season game, there’s a lot at stake here. Even Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich has admitted as such by his uncharacteristic decision to play his starters, something which he has a habit of doing whenever there’s a nationally broadcast game. If you want to join in on the fun, you can tweet me at @HunterFelt or email me at Hunter.Felt@theguardian.com and we’ll use your comments throughout the game. It’s the Spurs vs the Warriors at Oracle Arena! Opening tip is scheduled at 10:30pm EST, but we’ll be back before then.
Hunter will be here shortly. In the meantime, Draymond Green admits his team is bored:
Green gave an honest assessment after the Warriors’ second home loss in the past five nights. Their record 54-game home winning streak was snapped Friday by Boston, and Green acknowledged that a long season had taken its toll.
“It’s human nature to where [we’re], all right, kind of ready for the regular season to end,” Green said. “Talking 82 games, we get bored with that after a while. And that’s no excuse, just, I’m always give it to y’all real, and that’s about as real as I can be. It’s kind of at a point now where you’re ready for the regular season to be over.
