A Philadelphia 76ers win (126-119, their first since Feb. 4) wasn’t the one uncommon feat witnessed by those that tuned in for his or her marquee matchup towards the Golden State Warriors on Saturday evening. In the midst of the fourth quarter, the league’s all-time main 3-point shooter Steph Curry dunked for the primary time in six seasons.
In the midst of the fourth quarter, Tyrese Maxey missed a 3-pointer which was briefly recovered by Guerschon Yabusele. Earlier than the Frenchman may make a play, nonetheless, he was stripped by Buddy Hield, who seemed up and noticed Curry on their own on the opposite finish of the courtroom. Hield hit Curry in stride, and the veteran guard powered up for the slam.
Curry mentioned after the sport that it will “for positive” be the final dunk of his profession.
“I am calling it proper now,” Curry mentioned. “That was the final one you are gonna see. Sarcastically, this morning at shootaround, [assistant coach Jerry] Stackhouse mentioned he needed to see a dunk. He hadn’t mentioned that each one 12 months and I have never heard that in years, and it occurred tonight. Kinda humorous. It was a really random remark this morning, and the truth that it occurred was hilarious.”
The final time Curry had dunked in a recreation was the Warriors’ win over the Sacramento Kings on Feb. 21, 2019. It was so way back that he obtained free alongside the baseline through a display screen from Demarcus Cousins (who performed his final NBA recreation in 2022) and was assisted by none apart from Kevin Durant. Take a look at the elevation!
Curry’ dunk on Saturday accounted for 2 of his team-high 29 factors. He additionally grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 13 assists in one other robust outing. All instructed, he both scored or assisted on 23 of the Warriors’ 46 area targets, however that wasn’t sufficient as Golden State’s five-game successful streak got here to an finish.
The Warriors’ defeat to the Joel Embiid-less Sixers was proof of simply how essential Jimmy Butler has change into to this staff over the previous few weeks. Since Butler’s arrival in a blockbuster deadline deal, the Warriors are 7-1 with him within the lineup, and their solely loss was by 4 factors to the Dallas Mavericks.
Butler sat out on Saturday as a result of again spasms, which coach Steve Kerr mentioned have been the results of successful he took through the staff’s win over the Orlando Magic on Thursday. Kerr couldn’t give a definitive timeline for Butler’s return, however was optimistic that it will not be a long-term absence.
“I hope not and I do not suppose so, however you by no means know what these items,” Kerr mentioned previous to the loss to the Sixers. “Nevertheless it’s simply everyday for now.”
After Saturday’s defeat, the Warriors are 32-28 on the season, which has them in seventh place within the tightly-bunched Western Convention standings. They’re simply half a recreation behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the sixth and ultimate automated playoff spot, but additionally simply half a recreation forward of the Tenth-place Mavericks for the ultimate Play-In Match spot.
