Draymond Green first stood up for Giannis Antetokounmpo. After giving Jonathan Kuminga a few opportunities, Golden State head coach Steve Kerr briefly substituted rookie Tracye Jackson-Davis.

Jackson-Davis was familiar with the habits of the big man for the Bucks, including how he “drives left and spins back right” before attacking the hoop.

For the first time in months, Golden State was back to full strength and showed off its depth and talented bench, giving Antetokounmpo a lot of looks.

The Warriors easily defeated the Bucks 125-90 on Wednesday night, led by 29 points from Stephen Curry and 20 from Kuminga. This was the Warriors’ first loss since the All-Star break.

“He’s a fantastic player and difficult to contain.” Bravo to us for attempting to restrain him,” Jackson-Davis remarked. “I’ve never dealt with someone with that much length like him.”

Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard led a 19–5 run to begin the third quarter, bringing the Bucks back into the game after they had been behind by 20 at the half. However, Curry, who also finished with eight rebounds and five assists, went to work once more.

In addition to matching his personal career best of 15 points, Jackson-Davis recorded four of Golden State’s 13 blocked shots this season. Kuminga knocked out three more.

With left Achilles tendonitis, Antetokounmpo missed Monday night’s victory over the Clippers at home. Despite being dubious entering the game, he finished with 23 points and seven rebounds.

“We definitely needed everyone to guard that guy, as it takes a village,” Kerr remarked.

 

This was Lillard’s first game back at Chase Centre after being traded by the rival Trail Blazers to the Bucks last October. He ended with 20 points, five 3-pointers, and six assists. For the Bucks, Bobby Portis added 20 points as well.

Giannis is probably scratching his ass. The Warriors lit up Chase Centre and crushed the Bucks by a score of 35 points, leaving spectators in awe.

The Warriors enjoyed their largest lead at halftime this season, leading 78-58 at the break thanks to two late 3-pointers from Green, who finished with 12 points overall. Klay Thompson scored 10 points off the bench.

Milwaukee had won six straight games coming out of the All-Star break, holding opponents below 110 points in four of those games. Despite having the highest defensive rating in the league since the break, Milwaukee suffered its first loss in that time.

 

Coach Doc Rivers stated, “I really didn’t think this was our defence, I thought it was our offence.” “I didn’t think we had good offensive play the entire evening.”

The Bucks lost the opportunity to match their season-long winning run of seven games, which they had from December 11 to December 23. On January 13, Milwaukee defeated the Warriors 129-118 at home, their eighth straight victory.

With Curry making two of his first five shots and Golden State starting 11 for 16, the Warriors scored 40 points in the first quarter for the second time this season—it was their ninth 40-point period overall. Their third-quarter total of 15 points tied the season low for any quarter.

In the fourth, Golden State defeated the Bucks 32–9.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Bucks hadn’t been held to nine points or fewer in any quarter since they scored just eight in the first game against Miami on December 22, 2018, and hadn’t been kept to nine points or fewer in the last session since they scored nine against Toronto on February 2, 2015.

 

The Warriors bounced back from their 140-88 loss in Boston on Sunday, with Curry shooting 2 of 13 and 0 of 9 from beyond the arc.

NBA: Warriors and Stephen Curry defeat the ferocious Bucks | Inquirer Sports

Andrew Wiggins of Golden State returned to the court after missing four games because of a family matter; nevertheless, he only played 14 minutes as the Warriors won for the fourteenth time in their previous eighteen games.

During a second-quarter stoppage, the Warriors honoured former general manager Bob Myers, who was working the broadcast and had his three children present.