The Warriors eclipsed the best start in NBA history going 24-0 to start the season before losing to the Milwaukee Bucks on December 12th. A streak like that is unheard of, add on the fact that the Warriors are the defending champs, remarkable does not do them justice. In addition, after their loss to the Bucks, the Warriors have not shown any signs of slowing down, they walloped the Phoenix Suns 128-103. It would seem as though that one loss may be a blessing in disguise, less pressure on their way to another championship. The Warriors are an offensive powerhouse, not much can be done to shut down the best player in the game, Stephen Curry. Curry is averaging 32 pts. per game, while the Warriors lead the league in points per game. The team chemistry is off the charts. At this point, it is hard to believe any team is capable of beating them in a playoff series.
Since, the Bucks beat the Warriors they have not won. TMZ reported that the Bucks took prime advantage of their time in LA when they ventured to an LA strip club to party the night before their beatdown by the lowly Lakers. Greg Monroe, Khris Middleton, O.J. Mayo and Miles Plumlee cavorted to the wee hours of the morning on Monday night perhaps contributing to their pathetic performance against the Lakers on Tuesday losing 113-95. Monroe did not play against the Lakers Tuesday, a late scratch due to a left knee sprain, a sprain that didn’t seem to affect him much when he was out at until 2AM the night before.
Bucks coach, Jason Kidd is not delighted about the players late night excursion with good reason. The Bucks have a job to do, save the late night strip club runs to the off season. Save the celebrations when you actually have something to celebrate about. Moreover, a regular season win, albeit a significant one, means very little in the grand scheme of things. With only one championship in Bucks history, it appears as though the franchise has much more to do to obtain a 2nd, they are not on the right path.
Stephen Curry has taken notice of the Bucks obvious lack of maturity. “Oh, it was a nice celebration. We do remember that stuff. We were kind of laughing at some of the stuff going on. It was a big game for them. Friday will be a big game for us.”
In addition, Klay Thompson had a few words of his own, “Obviously a team that gave us our one in the loss column, and we felt they could have won with a little more class.”
The Warriors are a team that have a multitude of traits that other teams look to embody. Therefore, it will be interesting to see how the Warriors respond during the rematch with the Bucks on Friday. The Warriors are the defending champs, they have an impeccable work ethic and the drive to always reach for the next level, the Bucks should take a page from their playbook.
Nonetheless, I expect this impending matchup to be a lesson learned for the Milwaukee Bucks. Act like you’ve been there before.
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