Warriors left searching after Stephen Curry’s 38 not enough

SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry desperately needs help from his teammates.

And his team knows it.

“There’s no doubt we need to score and play elsewhere,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.

Curry dropped 38 points in the Warriors’ 116-110 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night – his sixth 30-point game this season. Meanwhile, a teammate has only finished with at least 20 points once: Dario Saric against the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 3.

Curry has also led any other Warriors player by at least five points in 11 games this season, the longest streak to start a season since Michael Jordan in 1987-88 (11), according to ESPN Stats and Information.

Saturday was the fifth time in 11 games that Curry outscored his closest teammate, according to ESPN stats and information. This is already more often than last season.

Golden State desperately lacks the extra scoring of Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins, who finished with 16 and six points respectively, and both got off to a slow start this season.

“There’s always been a certain approach to protecting ourselves. For years, you know where the focus is going to be,” Curry said. “Usually I try to blitz myself with a pick-and-roll, stay tight against Klay… either way, we have to make adjustments. We can’t keep making the same thing and expect a different result.”

“It’s not a panic or anything,” Curry continued. “It’s just about getting a little smarter and a little more organized.”

According to Draymond Green, the responsibility to better organize the group falls on him and Chris Paul.

“Chris [and I] We have to do a better job of making sure we move forward with things,” Green said. “When Steph does it, he does it. He’s just moving. It’s up to us to realize that and learn how to use it to get the other guys’ looks as well.”

Earlier in this young season, it looked like the Warriors were finally able to not only survive, but perhaps thrive in non-Curry minutes this season thanks to the team’s bench production. This effort was – and is – led by Paul.

Golden State ranks sixth in bench scoring at 41.1 points per game, but its scoring has been ineffective, ranking 24th in the league in field goal percentage (42.1%) and 25th in field goal shooting. 3 points (30.5%).

However, since the Warriors opened their six-game homestand on Saturday, any offense outside of Curry has been difficult to generate.

According to Green, it’s not about the Warriors still trying to figure out their game or their new roster. There were flashes, notably during a five-game stretch after losing their first game of the season.

Instead, it’s just a matter of execution.

“As players, we have to do better,” Green said. “When we play well, the players get the credit… when you play bad, the players have to take responsibility too. We can come here and point fingers… at the end of the day, we play basketball and this is our [job] to understand and play better.”

Days before Sunday’s game, Kerr said there were no imminent plans to change his lineups or rotations. But after the loss to Minnesota — in which rookies Brandin Podziemski and Trayce Jackson Davis almost gave them a chance to win in the final minutes — Kerr didn’t seem closed to the idea of ​​change.

“I love everyone I play with, but if we’re struggling, then we need to bring in guys that are going to give us a spark,” Kerr said.

“Everything is on the table for adjustments,” Curry added. “When you lose three games in a row, you have to make adjustments. I don’t know if it’s a turnover thing or something else, but everything is on the table and everyone has to be ready to step up.”