Warriors look to steady form against slumping Jazz
Heading into Monday's clash with the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City, the Golden State Warriors finally had a positive development on the injury front.
Kristaps Porzingis returned to action for the Warriors on Saturday in their 104-97 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder after missing six games due to illness. Porzingis played in only his second game for Golden State overall since being acquired in a trade with Atlanta on February 4th, finishing with nine points, five rebounds, and five assists in 23 minutes.
"I felt like my body's coming back to where I need to be," Porzingis told The Athletic on Saturday.
Porzingis has played in just 19 games this season across his time with the Hawks and Golden State. Managing POTS, a condition that significantly impacts his energy, has restricted his ability to stay on the court.
The Warriors plan to rest him against Utah on Monday and play Porzingis against Chicago on Tuesday. Even while being cautious, Golden State remains optimistic about what they've seen from him so far.
"I thought he looked like a guy who hadn't played in a little bit, rhythm-wise," Warriors coach Steve Kerr told The Athletic. "But I thought he looked great physically. A really encouraging night -- for him to play 23 minutes. I talked to him after the game. He said he felt good. It was really fun to see him. You can see what kind of weapon he is and the size he gives us. And obviously, we're just figuring out combinations and actions we want to run with him, for him, so it will take a little time, but really encouraging to see him out there."
Golden State will likely continue to lean heavily on Brandin Podziemski and Draymond Green to drive the offense. In March, Podziemski is averaging 21.7 points on 47.2% shooting while Green is chipping in 10.0 points and 6.3 assists per contest.
Utah has been playing short-handed in March like Golden State. The Jazz have stayed competitive, but are still struggling to find victories.
They wrapped a three-game road trip on Saturday with a 113-99 loss to Milwaukee. Utah struggled on offense against the Bucks, shooting just 34.4% from the field and 12 of 49 from 3-point range. Leading scorer Keyonte George, who finished with 22 points, exemplified those shooting struggles -- going 4-of-17 from the field.
Still, the energy and fight he's seen from his players recently has Jazz coach Will Hardy feeling confident about a bright future for this team beyond the current season.
"I'm really excited about where we're going," Hardy told the Deseret News. "And I'm really excited about the people that we have in our organization -- that's players and staff. When you talk about being a winning organization and building a winning culture, the people are everything, and I think we've done a really good job in terms of the people we've put in our locker room and the people that we put around them."