Locked On Warriors – Daily Podcast On The Golden State Warriors

The Warriors stunk up the joint in Utah last night, committing 19 turnovers and playing poor defense for most of the contest. Only Klay Thompson was able to get his shots, as Kevin Durant, Steph Curry and Draymond Green all struggled from the field. Everyone in white was a net minus, and the Jazz romped to a 30-point victory, only their third against the Dubs in the last 17 games. Steve Kerr called his team's play "pathetic."

The NBA individual stats leaderboards are the subject of this week's Statistical Deep Dive, particularly where the Warriors fall in some of the most fun categories, like true shooting percentage, win shares, and three-pointers made. There's a few surprises among them.

Lastly, the Warriors take a look at Steve Kerr, who's been fighting the good fight away from the sideline in addition to coaching the Warriors to the league's best record. His willingness to speak out against what he sees as unjust practices coming out of the White House resonates with his players, and deepens the bond between them. This penchant for confronting hard truths has also led Oakland Magazine to name Kerr its East Bay Person of the Year.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Nobody saw it coming but Locked on Podcast Network is all over the Blake Griffin trade aftermath. What's next for the Clippers? Did the Pistons do enough to make noise in the crowded East? But we can effectively say the Warriors destroyed Lob City, beginning their era of dominance one year after losing to LAC in a hard-fought playoff Game 7. Draymond will certainly miss playing Blake Griffin four times a year.

The Dubs are at altitude in Salt Lake City tonight to face the Jazz, who play slow and defend their turf. The Jazz are without Rodney Hood however, and matching the Warriors' scoring will be an issue, despite sensational rookie Donovan Mitchell scoring 19 points per game. If Curry and Co. can keep their turnovers down, they should be able to control the tempo and make Rudy Gobert a non-factor on the defensive end.

Speaking of defense, Kevin Durant is this week's #WoW, but we're not highlighting his epic blocks or indefensible shot-making. It's his passing lately that has him in Aliko's sights. He followed up a 14-assist effort—Durant eclipsed his career high of 12 midway through the third quarter—with a 28/10/11 triple double in home games against the Knicks and Wolves respectively last week.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Celtics and Warriors did not disappoint in their second meeting of the year, as Kyrie Irving put up 37 points on an array of acrobatic finishes. He found help from Al Horford and Jaylen Brown, who helped keep Boston in the game and contributed to their 14-28 night from range.

On the other side of the ball, Stephen Curry had a season-high 49 points, contributing to him being named the Western Conference Player of the Week. The Human Torch set Oracle on fire, nailing 8 threes and going 16-24 from the floor. Klay Thompson had another subpar game on the offensive end, but Draymond was his usual stat-stuffing self, and Kevin Durant put in 20 points to help the Dubs to a 109-105 victory.

Elsewhere, Rookie Watch has become Young Guns Watch on the Locked on Warriors podcast. Kevon Looney, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are this week's subjects. Patrick McCaw did not play in this one, and Jordan Bell is still days from being re-evaluated.

Lastly, Aliko covers the DeMarcus Cousins Achilles injury, including the scope of this loss, and the aftermath for both the All-Star game and the Pelicans' playoff hopes. After surgery over the weekend, Cousins is looking at a 6-10 month recovery period.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Warriors minorly romped to victory against visiting Minnesota on Thursday. Despite 48 fast break points and 21 three pointers, The Dubs allowed the Wolves to stay in the game for most of it, though they never led. Minnesota was without Jimmy Butler in the contest, and Andrew Wiggins did not play well, but Karl-Anthony Towns, former Warrior Jamal Crawford and Jeff Teague picked up the slack.

On the other side, Kevin Durant had his second triple double of the season in spectacular fashion (28-10-11), coming off a 14 assist effort on Tuesday. The Warriors overall had 37 assists on 48 made baskets, and shot better than 50% from the field and from three. Durant, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson all made more than half of their three pointers, shooting 9 a piece,

Down the Reddit Hole, Aliko and Miles discuss the aftermath of the All-Star Game roster announcements, including some Russell Westbrook hilarity. They also go in-depth into what's going on with the Wizards, who managed to nab two spots on the All-Star team. Other topics of discussion include the new Chinese Heritage Nike jerseys, and Draymond's gross elbow.

Finally, Aliko and Miles break down the Celtics matchup, including going in on Boston's recent 4-game losing streak. The Celtics are a defensive powerhouse with a middling offense. Can they hope to run with the Warriors or will they have to bog down their opponents' high-powered offense in order to secure victory?

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Timberwolves are visiting Oracle just as the Warriors are sorting out some questions. For one, how do they right the ship on defense? The Wolves have their own defensive issues, but are coming into town having won many more games in January than they've lost, and sporting two All-Stars in Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns.

Aliko and Locked on Wolves host Colton Molesky discuss the matchup, including how Klay Thompson and Butler will fare against each other, Kevin Durant's improved defense, and how Stephen Curry can go supernova at any point in time. Tune in the Locked on Wolves today for the entire conversation.

Since it's #ThrowbackThursday, Aliko also takes a look at the last few times the Warriors have posted a losing streak of three games or more, and discusses what was going on in the world at that time.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Despite another poor defensive effort, the Warriors talent was able to win out, toasting the Knicks in the 3rd quarter without Kristaps Porzingis. The Dubs reeled off 40 assists, and Stephen Curry scored 17 of his 32 points in the deciding quarter, which has become a norm for him.

With the All-Star Game coming up shortly, and teams set to be revealed tomorrow, we inaugurate the first annual Locked on Warriors All-Stars Mock Draft. How did the teams shake out?

Lastly, Aliko talks quarter-by-quarter stats, breaking down who is taking the most shots and when on this Warriors team.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Zach Lowe released his own version of the All-Star game starters and reserves, and the first question we have is, how did Curry get benched? We'll get into it in the second segment, featuring multiple Warriors of the Week - Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.

In the first segment, Aliko breaks down the play of Kristaps Porzingis, who may or may not be named an All-Star (along with Thompson and Green) by the time Knicks vs. Warriors tips off tonight at 7:30 PT. Porzingis' play has taken a dip in December and January, and his New York squad is 21-26, good for 10th in the gritty Eastern Conference.

Around the NBA, the Cavs are holding emotional meetings, Dame is wondering what's going on in Portland, and Kemba Walker is definitely on the trade block.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Warriors faltered against the Rockets, turning the ball over 19 times and allowing a defensive rating of 115 - which is horrible. James Harden played the last few possessions like the the MVP front-runner he is, while the Warriors lost their poise in the final minutes, looking desperate and chucking up shots outside of the flow of the offense.

Nick Young played well and Kevin Durant got his 26, but it was mostly all bad for the Dubs, who seemingly were playing from behind after allowing 40 points in the first quarter. The problems with turnovers and the defense have to be rectified before the All-Star break if Golden State is to maintain its home-court advantage for the playoffs, particularly since it has now lost the season series to Houston.

Jordan Bell is out for the next two weeks, but his stats still shone in this week's Rookie Watch. In particular, Bell leads all NBA rookies in Win Shares / 48 minutes. Elsewhere, redshirt rookie Ben Simmons will be duking it out with Donovan Mitchell for Rookie of the Year honors come playoff time.

Around the NBA, Jason Kidd was fired in Milwaukee, the Cavs are 3-7 in their last ten, and there's a big drop off between the top four teams in the West and the rest of the pack. The Warriors' schedule continues to be tough leading up to the All-Star break, so they will have ample chances to right the ship as the dog days come to a close.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Warriors will face the Houston Rockets on the first night of NBA Saturday Prime Time on ABC. The Rockets are healthy and playing good basketball, coming off a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves despite James Harden not being himself after coming back from a hamstring injury.

Elsewhere, Miles Johnson joins Aliko to discuss the All-Star starters and captains, go over the latest NBA trade rumors, and lament his floundering Wizards.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Warriors allowed the Bulls to stay in the game with turnovers, but ultimately it was the Dubs' talent that won out in the Second City. With 30 points from Stephen Curry and a season high 38 from Klay Thompson, Golden State shot the Bulls into submission. Turnovers came back in a big way, however.

For this week's #ThrowbackThursday, Aliko welcomes guest A Plus from the Souls of Mischief. A Plus is and Oakland native and world-renowned hip hop artist, and also Aliko's brother. They discuss what it was like to come up in Oakland in the 80s and 90s (and how the Warriors played into that) as well as the connection between basketball and hip hop, and whether or not basketball players imbibe in California's newest legal vice.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.