Monday night's matchup between the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs at Oracle Arena stood as the most hotly anticipated matchup of the NBA season so far, the first time that two teams with winning percentages above .850 had ever met so late in the regular season. It ended up just as entertaining as basketball fans had hoped, although not for the anticipated reasons.
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Fresh off last week's eviscerations of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls, the Warriors dominated the Warriors for most of the first three quarters in a 120-90 blowout that featured extended garbage time in the fourth. The Warriors exceeded the Spurs' points-allowed average before the end of the quarter and set a new season-high for points vs. the league's best defense, controlling tempo throughout and generally making a terrific team look as discombobulated as they've been in years.
Golden State's victory also ends a 13-game winning streak for San Antonio and opens up a three-game lead in the race for the West's No. 1 seed, but it stands out just as much for what it says about a potential Western Conference Finals matchup between these two elite squads. This result looked like a worst-case scenario for the Spurs and came with Tim Duncan out of the lineup to rest his sore right knee, but it's not clear that they have answers for every matchup problem that the Warriors posed on Monday.
As with every team, the biggest issue for the Spurs came in trying to stop Stephen Curry. The league's best offensive weapon scored 37 points (12-of-20 FG, 6-of-9 3FG, 7-of-7 FT) in only 28 minutes. Curry sent several Spurs defenders scrambling on possession after possession, devastating Tony Parker so thoroughly that Gregg Popovich had to turn to Kawhi Leonard to keep him under wraps within the opening few minutes. The Defensive Player of the Year did a solid job for a bit, but that success proved shortlived. Curry found space in transition and the halfcourt, made his usual set of shots only he can make, and created opportunities for his teammates with his movement and mere presence.


If Curry's excellence looks like a problem with no good solution, then the Spurs can at least hold some confidence that they will not be so sloppy in their remaining three regular season matchups. San Antonio turned it over 26 times on the night, more than twice their 12.9 per-game average, for 32 points. Those giveaways included 15 steals that allowed Golden State to get out in transition early to set tempo and force the visitors into more uncharacteristic mistakes. It was a rare sight for a Spurs organization that has become synonymous with self-confidence and calm under pressure.
It was bad enough that Popovich joked he could soon find himself unemployed after losing in a manner similar to that of ex-Cavs coach David Blatt just a week ago:
Popovich: "I'm glad my general manager wasn't in my locker room or I might've gotten fired."
— Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) January 26, 2016
Don't worry, Pop. I'm sure it would take at least one more blowout for the Spurs to cut you loose.
Five championships aside, Popovich figures to get that leeway because of the planned absence of the greatest player in franchise history. It's far to say that Duncan would have helped — his excellence at cutting off angles on defense and protecting the rim likely would have forced the Warriors into longer possessions, while his calming influence on offense and substantial work in the post could have provided a focal point for various sets. He is such a big part of the team's identity that it's impossible to issue a verdict on the Spurs' ability to compete with the Warriors in a second game, let alone a potential playoff series.
Nevertheless, the Spurs are renowned for their ability to play well with key players missing, and evidence suggests that Monday's thrashing could be an extreme manifestation of the underlying mechanics of the Warriors matchup. Curry's unprecedented abilities force the Spurs into a choice between bad options — Parker was a disaster early and saw his offense suffer all night (five points on 2-of-6 FG in 18 minutes), Leonard is a much better option but now such a big part of the offense that it may not be worth subjecting him to running around screens for long periods of time, and every other decision would qualify as a half-measure at best.
Beyond Curry, though, the Warriors simply appeared more capable of playing their preferred style. Draymond Green handled LaMarcus Aldridge in the post and mid-range, giving the Warriors their usual ability to contain bigger lineups without sacrificing versatility and pace. Meanwhile, Curry (a much improved defender) limited Parker enough that the Spurs had no real go-to matchup and subsisted early on David West mid-range jumpers and trips to the line, missing enough shots to ensure the Warriors would have opportunities to push in transition off rebounds. The turnovers exacerbated these problems but were not without explanation — they arose because San Antonio had to play in a way that doesn't suit their squad. For all their success and much-lauded adaptability, recent incarnations of the Spurs have struggled in ragged games full of scrambling at both ends. The Warriors force teams into that style more often than anyone else.

They did so on Monday due in part to key contributions from their reserve backcourt. Shaun Livingston was a clear standout, making all six of his field goal attempts for 13 points (11 of which came in the first half) via his go-to turnaround jumper over shorter guards. Leandro Barbosa affected the game in ways that don't clearly show up in the box score, forcing the issue with his logically questionable drives and keeping up the pace when it very easily could have dipped during key second-quarter runs.
However, it's still hard to argue that any player mattered half as much as Curry. His talents often render issues of pace or style irrelevant. The Spurs looked much more controlled to start the second half and cut the lead to 62-52, but Curry scored 18 points in the quarter, often on shots that only look reasonable to him, and ensured that the visitors would have no chance at a comeback. He continues to be the most demoralizing opponent in the league — a team can improve its mentality and do everything right and get beaten anyway.
The Spurs will be fine — they are extremely resilient and, like the Warriors, still haven't lost at home. Regardless, this stunning result proved that the defending champions remain clear title favorites until another contender beats them. It says a lot that the Spurs just lost by 30 and still seem to hold the best chance.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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