The final score again became secondary on another devastating night for the Warriors because of a brutal injury.
Moses Moody, after missing the Warriors’ previous 10 games, played incredible until 59 seconds remaining in overtime when the 23-year-old’s kneecap was in a place it never belongs. The Warriors wing stole the ball from Cooper Flagg, had an open lane for a dunk and fell to the ground in midair on his dunk attempt.
Players from both teams consoled Moody, who had to leave the arena on a stretcher a minute before the Warriors’ eventual 137-131 overtime win against the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night at American Airlines Center.
Moody led the Warriors with 23 points in 34 minutes. He made four 3-pointers, had three steals, two blocked shots and was a plus-7.
Kristaps Porziņģis dropped 22 points and played 29 minutes for only the fourth time this season. Brandin Podziemski also scored 20 points in a game where the Warriors had eight players score in double figures.
For the Mavs, Flagg scored a game-high 32 points, and former Warrior Klay Thompson scored 15 points off the bench, including five threes, against his old team.
Here are three takeaways from a somber Warriors win.
Moody’s Great Return Spoiled
The losses of Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler have hurt enough. Moody missing 10 straight games to a right wrist sprain was just more salt to the wound. He only had played one game in March, but averaged 15.9 points per game with 48.6/40.7/80 shooting splits on 8.1 3-point attempts per game over 10 games in February.
Finally, Moody made his return Monday and was back in the starting five alongside Podziemski, De’Anthony Melton, Draymond Green and Kristaps Porziņģis. Moody’s first shot was a 3-point attempt he buried from the left wing out of a pass from the post by Porziņģis. He did a bit of everything in the first quarter with a three, an assist, a rebound and a blocked shot.
Moody in the second quarter switched gears and got to the rack. He already was whistled for three fouls, but went into halftime with nine points on 3-of-6 shooting. If the first half was a warmup, Moody found his groove early in the third quarter when he scored eight points over three consecutive Warriors possessions in a minute’s span.
To begin the fourth quarter, Moody was a menace guarding Flagg. His impact on both sides was felt all game until a terrible sight in overtime had everybody holding their breath and shaking their heads. Moody stole the ball from Flagg in overtime and had a wide-open dunk until his leg collapsed in the middle of his dunk attempt.
Emotions are running heavy right now as the Warriors await the results of Moody’s X-ray.
Made For March
There’s something about March and Warriors rookies Will Richard and LJ Cryer. The two met in the national championship game last year in their final year of college, and as March Madness is in the thick of its chaos, the two provided a major offensive boost from long distance.
Richard and Cryer combined to go a perfect 4 of 4 on threes in the first quarter, making two each, during the Warriors’ hot shooting start. Then as the Mavs opened the second quarter on a 12-0 run, each hit threes that stopped the bleeding. They each had nine points on 3-of-4 shooting beyond the arc in the first half, giving them 18 of the Warriors’ 26 bench points.
The young duo were part of a long list of contributors for the Warriors. Though Richard only played two-plus minutes in the second half, he made his one shot, and of course it was a three. Cryer scored five points in the second half, was a plus-14, and then started overtime.
Golden State’s rookie duo scored 26 points off the bench and went 8 of 10 on threes.
KP’s Reunion Tour Ends
It wasn’t exactly a world tour like a slurring Justin Timberlake, but the entire Warriors’ road trip was a reunion tour of sorts for Porziņģis. Literally.
Five of the six teams the Warriors played were former employers of Porziņģis. The only team that wasn’t is the Detroit Pistons. Porziņģis sat the first game of the road trip against the New York Knicks, the team that drafted him No. 4 overall in 2015. He then dropped 30 points against the Washington Wizards, but only 11 against the Boston Celtics before scoring five points in a loss to the Pistons where Porziņģis’ night ended after 11 minutes because of a back spasm.
That held him out Saturday night against the Atlanta Hawks, the team that traded him at this year’s deadline. But Porziņģis was back to close the trip, and the Warriors sure were happy to have him.
Porziņģis not only played his most minutes as a Warrior, but he also was a major reason they snapped a three-game losing streak. The big man now has scored at least 20 points in three of his last five games. He was more than a scorer, too, contributing seven rebounds and five assists.
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