Warriors Finish Perfect Homestand After Kerr-Green Clash, Beat Mavericks 126-116
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The Golden State Warriors closed a turbulent week with a 126-116 Christmas Day victory over the Dallas Mavericks, securing a 3-0 homestand just three days after a heated sideline exchange between head coach Steve Kerr and forward Draymond Green.
“We’re in a good place,” Kerr said Sunday night in San Francisco after the club’s first three-game winning streak in a month.
The confrontation occurred Monday against the Orlando Magic, when a third-quarter turnover prompted Kerr to call timeout. As Kerr tried to steer Green away from officials, the two shouted at one another, and Green left the bench for the locker room, missing the final 20 minutes of that game. On Wednesday, both apologized to teammates during practice.
Green logged a controlled 28 minutes against Dallas, but offense came from elsewhere. Stephen Curry scored 23 points and was one of seven Warriors in double figures. Veteran center Al Horford, back from sciatica, hit four first-quarter three-pointers to create early separation. Jimmy Butler finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and nine assists.
Dallas lost forward Anthony Davis to groin spasms in the second quarter and could not erase a double-digit deficit. The Warriors improved to 16-15 and will begin a three-game road trip to Toronto, Brooklyn and Charlotte later this week.
“Stuff like that happens,” Curry said of the Kerr-Green dispute. “They handled yesterday at practice well, and we handled today well as a team.”
Butler, who checked on Green during Monday’s locker-room cooling-off period, welcomed the intensity. “You’ve got two fierce competitors who have won together and want to keep winning,” he said. “I like the confrontation. It’s good for us.”
Source: ESPN.com
