It will take significantly less time to read this recap than the amount of time officials took to try and fix the shot clock at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday night.
With around 1:40 left in the 4th quarter and the Warriors up 124-117, the shot clock in Los Angeles simply stopped working. After multiple challenges on back to back plays, for out of bounds calls on LeBron James and Draymond Green, there was almost 24 minutes of stoppage around the shot clock. Eventually, the PA announcer for the Lakers went old school and pulled out his stop watch and was the human shot clock for the last few minutes.
Once he was done slamming the ball into the court repeatedly, LeBron had some jokes for the ESPN broadcast, including telling the officials "C'mon, I have a flight to catch."
Outside of the shot clock bananza, NBA fans were treated to another LeBron vs. Steph Curry classic.
Early in the game, Anthony Davis appeared to be poked in the eye and only played 12 minutes of the contest. With Davis out of the paint, Golden State thrived. After scoring only four paint points in the first quarter, the Warriors totalled 58 points in the paint in the other 3 quarters and controlled the offensive and defensive glass.
With Davis out of the middle of the court, Golden State played their game extremely well. Draymond Green had 13 assists on Saturday night, and the Warriors ball movement was incredible. Golden State had 38 assists, which led to their impressive 41% shooting from three-point range and over 50% shooting from the field.
However, the biggest key to the Warriors win was a combined 58 points from the Splash Brothers. Klay Thompson came out on a HEATER in the 1st quarter, solidifying why Steve Kerr asked him to come off the bench in the first place. With Curry scoreless in the first quarter, Thompson held the Warriors offense above water until Davis exited the game and the floodgates opened.
Curry added 31 points of his own, returning from an ankle injury that held him out for a little over a week. With Chris Paul and Klay Thompson back leading the bench unit, the Warriors showed why they are the most dangerous team to face in the play-in or the first round of the playoffs.
With the win against the Lakers on Saturday night, the Warriors overtake the 9th seed in the Western Conference and now hold the season series tiebreaker over the Lakers. Curry and the Warriors have 16 games remaining in their schedule, and they are 3 games back of the 6th seeded Kings.
Up next: The Warriors host the New York Knicks at home, the start of a 3 game home stand.
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