The Warriors return home after an undefeated road trip to take on the Lakers on Wednesday.
Warriors vs. LakersWednesday, Nov. 237:30 p.m.Oracle Arena
TV: CSN Bay Area
RADIO: 95.7 The Game, Warriors Radio Network
END OF THE ROAD
Coming off an undefeated four-game road trip, the Warriors return home to play six of their next seven games at Oracle Arena, beginning on Wednesday night against the Lakers. This will be the second of four matchups between the two teams this season. Los Angeles dealt Golden State their only road loss of the season back on November 4, and the two sides will meet again on Friday for the second game in a home-and-home sequence. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Watch the action on CSN Bay Area or listen to the call on 95.7 The Game or on the Warriors Radio Network.
LAST TIME OUT
The Warriors completed an undefeated four-game road trip on Monday night after earning a 120-83 win over the Indiana Pacers. Full Recap
MATCHUP AT A GLANCE
GSW
12-2
2nd in West
116.8 PPG (1st)
43.7 RPG (14th)
30.9 APG (1st)
LAL
8-7
T-6th in West
109.9 PPG (3rd)
43.3 RPG (19th)
22.1 APG (12th)
PROJECTED STARTERS
GSW: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Zaza Pachulia
LAL: Jose Calderon, Nick Young, Luol Deng, Julius Randle and Timofey Mozgov
INJURY & ROSTER NOTES
GSW: Damian Jones is on D-League assignment. Team Notes
LAL: D'Angelo Russell (sore left knee) and Ivica Zubac (D-League assignement) are out. Julius Randle (hip pointer) is doubtful. Team Notes
PROTECTING THE HOUSE
Coming into the season, one of the biggest questions surrounding the Warriors was whether or not they’d be able to provide sufficient rim protection without the likes of Andrew Bogut and Festus Ezeli, who moved on to other teams during free agency. Well, after a few hiccups to start out, the Dubs seem to have figured out that aspect of their defense, and are now defending the rim even better than they did last season. During their undefeated four-game road trip, Golden State held their opponents to a combined 39.6 percent shooting at the rim, which would compare favorably to the top mark in the league so far this season (Miami, 44.9 percent). That lowered opponents’ at the rim success against the Warriors to 49.8 percent on the season as a whole, the eighth-stingiest number in the league and better than their mark of 50.4 percent a year ago. While Golden State lacks a rim protector in the traditional sense of the word, they make do just fine thanks to their collection of long-armed defenders. Both Draymond Green (1.7) and Kevin Durant (1.3) rank among the top-25 players in the league in blocks per game, and are well on their way to superb defensive seasons.
TEAM LEADERS
GSW
PTS: Durant (26.9)
REB: Green (9.1)
AST: Green (6.9)
LAL
PTS: Williams (16.6)
REB: Randle (8.1)
AST: Russell (4.8)
INDIANA SCOUTING REPORT
You don’t have to go back very far to see the evidence of the strides the young Lakers have made in their first season under the direction of Head Coach Luke Walton. Back on November 4, Los Angeles dismantled Golden State to the tune of a 117-97 defeat, the Warriors lone road loss so far this season. The Lakers currently sit at 8-7 on the season and are without a doubt one of the biggest surprises thus far, although they’ve struggled more of late, having lost three of their last five games. The Lakers capitalized on Golden State’s poor three-point shooting in that prior meeting in which the Dubs shot just 5-of-32 (.156) from beyond the arc, by far their worst mark in any game this season. However, since that defeat, the Warriors have converted three-point shots at a 41.6 percent clip, which is exactly identical to their league-leading percentage from last season. Both the Warriors and Lakers rank among the top-10 teams in the league in both three-pointers made and attempted per game, so whichever side is able to get their long-distance shots to fall on Wednesday stands a very good chance at coming out with a victory.