Preview of the San Antonio Spurs vs. Golden State Warriors game.
Following a tough defeat to the Sacramento Kings at crucial moments, the San Antonio Spurs will head south to take on the Golden State Warriors. Following a two-game winning streak against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers, the Spurs have now dropped two straight games. Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio’s standout big man, will be sidelined again after suffering an ankle injury against the Houston Rockets. Stephen Curry, the standout player for Golden State, will also be sidelined due to an ankle ailment.
In their most recent meeting, San Antonio came up short against Golden State, falling 118–111. In the defeat, Devin Vassell led the Spurs with 24 points from the bench. The Spurs will look to Vassell to guide the group once more in an attempt to snap their losing skid on Saturday since Wembanyama is not available.
Golden State Warriors (33-29) vs. San Antonio Spurs (13-50)
9, 2024, March 9, 7:30 p.m. CT
View: Bally | Hear: WOAI at 1200 hours
Spurs Injury Reports: Out is Charles Bassey (left knee,) OUT (Sidy Cissoko, G League) David Duke Jr. (G League) is out. Jamaree Bouyea (G League,) – Out RaiQuan Gray (G League) is out. Cedi Osman – Out (left ankle), Victor Wembanyama – Out (right ankle)
Warriors: Stephen Curry (right ankle) is out. Trayce Jackson-Davis: Dubious (ankle, right)
Things to be aware about
Is Malaki Branham able to continue?
The development of Malaki Branham, a sophomore combo guard, into a better player has been one of the best Spurs narratives since the All-Star break. Branham has averaging 14.4 points and 2.4 assists since returning to the lineup following the trade deadline. He has shot 50% from the field and 54.3% from beyond the arc for an amazing 65.2% true shooting percentage. In that period, he has also improved greatly as a defender.
Branham’s role as a substitute scorer is probably not going to change. Will Branham be able to sustain his form against a formidable Warriors team after having his best game of the year on Thursday? The Warriors are a bottom-15 defensive team, just like the Kings. That might indicate that Branham finds his scoring mojo again for a huge night.
Protection, protection, protection
The Warriors have the ability to fill it up, no mystery. They’ve been doing it for years. They rank eighth in the league in terms of three-point shooting (37.6%) and sixth in terms of points scored per game (118.7). As demonstrated by their most recent game against the Kings, the Spurs have had difficulty on the defensive end without Wembanyama. To prevent this from turning into a shootout, they will have to step up their defense and close out on the Warriors shooters.
Is the hot shooting going to stop?
Recently, the Spurs have been devastating deep teams. Zach Collins and other players have also joined in on the flurry of threes that Vassell and Branham have spearheaded. Golden State is 25th in the league in terms of three-point attempts allowed per game, but only lets opponents shoot 35.6% from beyond the arc (7th in the NBA). The Warriors’ perimeter defense could be overwhelmed by another impressive shooting night.
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