What we learned as Warriors drop fourth straight in loss to Magic originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
The streak continues. Scratch that, the streaks continue.
With their 130-129 loss Thursday night against the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center, the Warriors’ losing streak on this road trip extended to four games. The loss also was their fifth on the road this season, and the Warriors now have lost five straight games in Orlando.
While the Magic won a combined 43 games the past two seasons, the Warriors haven’t beaten them on the road since Dec. 1, 2017.
The Warriors now have lost to the one-win Detroit Pistons and the one-win Magic, falling to 3-6 on the season.
In the first half, the Warriors controlled the game. They dominated on the glass, in the paint and with second-chance points. In the second half, the script was completely flipped.
Steph Curry and Klay Thompson combined to score 66 points and made 15 3-pointers. Kevon Looney scored a regular-season career-high of 17 points. It still wasn’t enough vs. a team at the bottom of most categories in the NBA.
Here are three takeaways from the Warriors’ fourth straight loss.
Klay Day
This was the game that Thompson had been waiting for. He scored at least 20 points for the first time this season. He set a season-high in 3-pointers, and he didn’t have to wait to catch fire.
Coming into Thursday night, Thompson was shooting 31.8 percent overall in the first quarter and was 2-for-13 on 3-pointers. Against the Magic, Klay drained his first three shots — all being 3-pointers. His first three were an indication of what the Magic were going to have to deal with.
First, he used quick hands to snag a Franz Wagner pass. Then, he dribbled down the floor and found his spot. The result: Three points for the Warriors.
On the night, Thompson scored a season-high 27 points while going 10-for-24 from the field and 7-for-15 from beyond the arc. His first three of the night gave him sole possession of 17th on the all-time 3-point list, passing J.R. Smith, and he kept it going.
But he also missed a one-handed runner at the end with the game on the line. That’s what Thompson will remember most.
Steph Vs. Everybody
Curry entered the night as one of four players to be leading their team in points, assists and rebounds per game. As the Warriors have been struggling, Curry has been doing everything he can to win games. Literally everything.
He also had some smooth chemistry going with his Splash Brother in Orlando.
Everything again wasn’t enough, though. Curry scored 39 points, made eight 3-pointers and had nine assists. Not enough.
Down the stretch, he also had a handful of critical turnovers and committed five in the loss. Still, those stats should lead to a win. They haven’t been lately.
Stop Fouling
There was one ugly constant in the Warriors’ loss. Through nine games, the Warriors can’t help themselves. They simply cannot stop fouling. At all.
One of their biggest issues was evident again Thursday night from the start. In the first quarter, the Warriors were called for eight fouls and only took two free throws. The Magic in those 12 minutes committed half as many fouls and attempted 13 free throws.
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How bad did the discrepancy get?
Golden State wound up being whistled for 30 fouls, including three technical fouls — one on Draymond Green, one on James Wiseman and one on Steve Kerr. The Magic shot 46 free throws and made 33. The Warriors attempted 15 free throws and made 10.
So in a one-point loss, the Warriors took 31 fewer free throws and the Magic made 23 more than them. This losing formula is only getting worse, and it has to end in a hurry.