The Golden State Warriors looked to get the season off to a good start as they welcomed the Los Angeles Lakers for their home opener. The Warriors were looking to improve their record to 2-0 after an impressive road win against the Sacramento Kings in their first game of the season, while the Lakers were looking for their first win of the season after losing their first three.
Emotions were high for the Warriors at the start of the game as they were playing for first time this regular season in front of their home fans. In addition, the team played their first game since Klay Thompson signed a four-year max extension, making it an even more emotional game. Thompson definitely looked to be pressing and forcing the action in the beginning of the game as he picked up two quick fouls in the first five minutes of the game. The team overall looked lackadaisical for the first quarter and a half and dug themselves a 33-43 deficit at the 7:45 mark in the second quarter. They then went on to turn things around and went on a 28-12 run for the rest of second quarter to grab a six-point lead at half.
The third quarter saw two great shooting guards, Klay Thompson and Kobe Bryant, go back and forth all quarter. It was almost as if the two players were playing for the title of "best shooting guard in the NBA" as Bryant scored 19 points and Thompson scored 16 points in the third quarter.
Klay Thompson got over his early jitters and erupted for a career-high 41 points in the game on 14-18 shooting from the field and 5-7 from three-point range. Stephen Curry added 31 points and 10 assists on 10-19 shooting from the field and 3-8 from three point range, further making a case for being universally dubbed "the best backcourt in the NBA."
Kobe Bryant paced the Lakers with 28 points on 12-28 shooting, while Jordan Hill added 23 points on 10-14 from the field.
Golden State blew the game open in the fourth quarter, outscoring Los Angeles 34-18 in the quarter. The depth of the team has looked much improved from last season. Even without David Lee for the first two games this season, the offense hasn't missed a beat. Harrison Barnes is embracing his starting position and showed he belongs in that spot by scoring 15 points on 5-6 shooting tonight. Andre Iguodala has been showing a lot of energy coming off the bench, and Shaun Livingston is still on limited minutes due to injury. Getting David Lee and a non-limited Shaun Livingston back can only improve the already potent offense.
The Steve Kerr era is looking good so far as the Golden State Warriors improved to 2-0 on the season. They will be looking to improve to 3-0 tomorrow, November 2, as they face the Portland Trailblazers at 6 P.M. PST.