Warriors survive second straight overtime game
On a night when injuries sidelined regular-season MVP Stephen Curry and NBA Finals MVP Andre Iguodala, Green did his best MVP impersonation, making a seemingly impossible overtime three-pointer and leading the Warriors to a 109-105 victory against the Hawks at Oracle Arena.
If they ever really stopped being the most joyous squad on the planet, the Warriors quickly returned to that designation as Green led a total team effort with 15 points, 13 rebounds, nine assists and four steals.
“What can you say?” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said, searching for words to describe how Green willed the Warriors to a victory without their captains.
Paul Millsap’s layup trimmed Atlanta’s deficit to 104-103 with 1:05 remaining, but Green made a leg-sprawling, shot-clock-beating three-pointer for a 107-103 lead with 40.2 ticks on the clock.
After missing two free-throw tries a minute earlier, Atlanta’s Dennis Schroder made two to cut the Warriors’ lead to 107-105 with 33.4 seconds left, but Klay Thompson lost Millsap on a drive from the left wing and pulled up for a jumper for the final margin with 11.4 seconds remaining.
The Warriors (54-5), playing without Curry (left ankle) and Iguodala (left hamstring), had six players in double-digit scoring and got a basket from all 11 players who logged minutes.
Even without their top scorer, the Warriors took a 17-10 lead on a jumper by Livingston at the 5:43 mark of the first quarter.
Atlanta responded with an 8-0 run to take the lead on a Mike Scott three-pointer, but the Hawks shot 3-for-10 from inside the arc in the first and went into the second trailing 32-26.
The Warriors led by as many as 14 points in the second quarter, getting an alley-oop dunk from Bogut for a 58-44 lead with 2:26 remaining.
Green responded with a three-point play that tied it and foreshadowed his clutch play down the stretch.