The Golden State Warriors would have been excused for coming out slow on Wednesday night against the Atlanta Hawks. They were coming off a disappointing and dramatic loss to the LA Clippers on Monday, and on Wednesday afternoon were hit with brutal news: starting shooting guard De’Anthony Melton will undergo season-ending surgery on his sprained ACL.
But they didn’t come out slow. Instead, they came out swinging. A fun first quarter saw the teams go back and forth for a while, until the Dubs turned on the burners. An outstanding defensive performance — led by Draymond Green’s superstar defense, and Lindy Waters III putting the clamps on high school teammate Trae Young — forced Atlanta’s top-10 offense to go ice cold, while the offense started to fly.