“That’s why we transferred him! » That’s what Stephen Curry said after the win over Spurs, and his comments were aimed at Gary Payton II decisive by his aggressiveness and the energy brought in the last quarter. A stolen ball, a snatched offensive rebound, a basket… We found the Payton of last season, and it’s all Golden State that feels better.
” That speaks for itself “ continues Curry. “It helps to understand how he helped us win a championship title last year when he’s healthy and how he can influence the game in so many different ways.”
After his basket with the fault, Curry went to thank him with an unprecedented celebration. “When I got the foul and after my celebration, I made sure to show him some affection because he kept the ball in play. It’s little things that people don’t really recognize, but we all recognize how valuable he is with decisive action even if it doesn’t show in the stats. But it’s just about having fun and enjoying it. »
Warriors among worst teams on trailing balls
On the stats side, Payton still signed a good line of stats with 7 points, 8 rebounds, but also 1 assist, 1 interception and 1 block in 18 minutes. “Everything happens naturally as we had with us all last year” explains Jordan Poole. “We are happy that he is back, we know how much impact he can have. »
Same speech with Steve Kerr who, all season, criticized his players for lacking punch in defense. “We needed that. We needed that energy… We needed those athletic qualities. All year, we have not been good on the balls lying around. There is a stat that shows that we are among the last to recover the balls lying around. Gary can help in this area, to create additional possessions and to carry out important actions for us. »
