Warriors at Nets
The Golden State Warriors all of a sudden look like a solid NBA team during their east coast trip and will try to finish with a winning record on the five-game excursion when they visit the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday. The Warriors put up fights at playoff contenders Philadelphia and Boston on the first two stops before breaking through with convincing wins over Cleveland and Washington.
Golden State breezed to a 131-112 triumph over the Cavaliers on Saturday and held off a late charge to earn a 125-117 win at Washington on Monday while recording a total of 80 assists and shooting a combined 51.4 percent from the floor in the two contests. "We've been really sharp moving the ball, and a lot of guys are knocking down 3s," Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters. "The game's a lot easier when the ball's going in the hoop." The Nets are once again operating without star guard Kyrie Irving, who is out indefinitely with a knee sprain, and found an easy flow without him on Monday. Brooklyn won its last three at home and improved to 14-12 in front of its home fans with Monday's 119-97 triumph over Phoenix.
TIME: 7:30 p.m. ET. TV: NBCS Bay Area, YES, Sportsnet One
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (12-39): Golden State is one of the more interesting teams ahead of Thursday's trade deadline and a pair of players impressing opposing scouts of late are wings Glenn Robinson III and Alec Burks. Robinson totaled 44 points on 17-of-26 shooting in the last two games while Burks knocked down five 3-pointers en route to 30 points on Monday. "They've brought experience," forward Draymond Green told the San Francisco Chronicle of Burks and Robinson. "They've both played extremely well this year, being a couple older guys. Neither of them really say much, but they've definitely brought good energy."
ABOUT THE NETS (22-27): Irving's absence left plenty of shots available Monday and Caris LeVert made the most of the opportunity, matching a career high with 29 points on 10-of-20 shooting. "I just felt like I was aggressive," LeVert told reporters. "Playing a lot of minutes, especially playing with the ball in my hands, it gave me a lot of rhythm tonight. My teammates gave me a lot of looks tonight, so it was easy to go out there and compete." LeVert shot 31.4 percent from the floor and averaged 10.3 points while coming off the bench in the previous three games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Warriors PG D'Angelo Russell (quad) sat out Monday and is day-to-day.
2. Nets PF Taurean Prince scored 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting Monday after going 1-of-9 from the floor in a loss at Washington on Saturday.
3. Golden State took the last eight in the series, including four straight at Brooklyn.