Warriors at Cavaliers
The Golden State Warriors head into their toughest game yet playing anything but their best basketball as they prepare to visit the East-leading Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday. The Warriors opened the three-game road trip with a loss at Detroit on Saturday and have dropped two of three.
“Struggle” is a relative term for a team with four losses in its first 41 games, but Golden State is in the midst of its worst stretch so far this season. “I think it’s a wake-up call that we got punched, but there have been some signs the past several weeks,” Warriors center Andrew Bogut told reporters after Saturday’s loss. “It just hasn’t been addressed that much because we’ve been winning. We need to pick it up, pick up our intensity and get our defense better.” Golden State should not have any trouble finding intensity in the NBA Finals rematch on Monday, and the Cavaliers are at the top of their game at the moment. Cleveland has won nine of its last 10 games and is coming home after breezing through a 5-1 road trip that closed with a 91-77 domination of the Houston Rockets on Friday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (37-4): Harrison Barnes made his return to the starting lineup in Detroit after easing his way back into the rotation off the bench, and the starting frontcourt seemed to struggle to find a rhythm. “Guys were playing hard and cutting and moving, but we weren’t on the same page and didn’t have the same timing,” interim coach Luke Walton told reporters. “The flow we like to play with was missing. It looked a little chaotic.” Barnes and Draymond Green each finished with five points and combined to shoot 3-of-18 from the field.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (28-10): Cleveland is having no trouble finding its timing with guard Kyrie Irving back in the lineup on a regular basis. “I think just being on the road, just together for 12 days just brought us together more,” center Tristan Thompson told ESPN.com. “And you can see it on the court. There’s more flow. Guys are understanding where guys are going to be at.” Irving was playing only his third game back from a fractured kneecap when the Cavaliers went into Golden State on Christmas Day and suffered an 89-83 loss.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Cavaliers F Kevin Love has recorded four straight double-doubles.
2. Warriors G Stephen Curry has knocked down at least four 3-pointers in each of the last eight games.
3. Golden State has not played at Cleveland since winning the clinching Game 6 of the NBA Finals on June 16.