Knicks at Warriors
The Golden State Warriors will be looking for their 50th consecutive home win when they host the New York Knicks on Wednesday. The Warriors, who have already broken the record for consecutive home wins, made it 49 straight with a rout of New Orleans on Monday and need 13 more overall wins to break the regular-season record set by the Phil Jackson-led Chicago Bulls of 1995-96.
Jackson coached that Bulls team to the best record in league history but is now trying to resurrect the Knicks franchise from the front office, where he serves as team president while star forward Carmelo Anthony waits for the front office to improve the team. “It's in their court,” Anthony said of Jackson and the front office. “The ball is in their court. They have an opportunity; we have an opportunity to do something this offseason. We gotta do something. It's there.” The offseason won’t come nearly as soon for the Warriors, who are trying to balance going after the regular season wins record and staying healthy for the playoffs. More routs like Monday’s will help in both regards, as stars Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green all had the luxury of sitting out the fourth quarter of the 125-107 victory.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), CSN Bay Area (Golden State)
ABOUT THE KNICKS (28-40): New York is 2-2 on a six-game road trip after Jose Calderon’s 3-pointer off a broken play in the final seconds lifted the team to a 90-87 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday. That play was supposed to go to Anthony before it fell apart, and the Knicks’ star forward is still playing like his team is competing for a playoff spot. Anthony has scored 20 or more points in eight straight games and is shooting 53.4 percent from the field in the last five contests.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (60-6): Curry’s historic 3-point shooting is rubbing off on some teammates that might not look like 3-point specialists, and center Andrew Bogut knocked down his third career 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down on Monday. “He messes around in practice, and he’s actually a pretty good shooter,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr told reporters. “If he just lets it fly, he can make shots. … It seemed to energize the team. The bench was going crazy. The crowd was going nuts. It was one of those lucky plays that gets you going.” The Warriors will need to work not to overlook the Knicks with a three-game road trip that includes a showdown in San Antonio beginning on Friday.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Knicks F Kristaps Porzingis (illness) sat out on Sunday and is day-to-day.
2. The Warriors shot 58 percent from the field on Monday and are 30-0 when shooting 50 percent or better this season.
3. Golden State has taken three straight in the series, including a 116-95 win in New York on Jan. 31.