<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/warriors-news-gary-payton-ii-makes-dumb-admission-collapse-rockets');   ga('set', 'title', 'Warriors’ Gary Payton II makes ‘dumb’ admission after collapse vs. Rockets');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Warriors-news-Gary-Payton-II-makes-dumb-admission-after-collapse-vs.-Rockets.jpg"></figure><h1>Warriors’ Gary Payton II makes ‘dumb’ admission after collapse vs. Rockets</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-12T08:44:48-08:00">December 12th, 8:44am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-12T08:44:48-08:00">December 12th, 8:44am</time><address><a>Malik Brown</a>Malik Brown is a multimedia reporter based in Atlanta who covers the Hawks and Dream for ClutchPoints. Malik has worked in entertainment and sports, and he specializes in the NBA and NFL.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Golden State Warriors</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Golden State <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-fans-golden-state-robbed-nba-cup-rockets">Warriors took a tough loss</a> that was decided in the final seconds against the Houston Rockets, as they’ve been eliminated from the NBA Cup. Down one point with 11 seconds remaining in the game, Stephen Curry missed a three-pointer and Gary Payton II grabbed the offensive rebound while on the ground. He then threw the ball out which caused another squirmish on the floor, but instead of a jump ball, the referees called a foul on the Warriors and Jalen Green went to the free-throw line.</p><p>That put the Rockets up three points, and though the Warriors had a chance to take the game into overtime, they missed the shot.</p><p>After the game, Payton <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/daltonjohnson.bsky.social/post/3ld3kfbatq225" rel="noopener">opened up</a> about grabbing the offensive rebound and throwing it out.</p><p>“Dumb play by me,” Payton said, via Warriors reporter Dalton Johnson.</p><p>Though many would say that was the deciding factor of the game, the Warriors were up 90-84 with a little over three minutes remaining in the game and didn’t score for the rest of the quarter. The Rockets played great defense down the stretch and executed on offense, and it looked like they were hungry for the win.</p><h2>Steve Kerr blasts refs after Warriors lost</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Gary-Payton-II.jpg"><figcaption>Troy Taormina-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>After the game, head coach <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-steve-kerr-ruthlessly-blasts-officials-after-controversial-nba-cup-loss-vs-rockets">Steve Kerr made sure to let everyone know</a> how he felt about the call at the end of the game that gave the Rockets free throws instead of it being a jump ball.</p><p>“I’ve never seen a loose ball foul on a jump ball situation 80-feet from the basket with the game on the line… I think I saw it in college one time 30 years ago, never in the NBA,” Kerr said, via Brett Siegel, ClutchPoints NBA insider. “That is… unconscionable. I don’t even understand what just happened.</p><p>“I’m stunned. I’m stunned… I don’t think an elementary school (official) would’ve made that call in that game.”</p><p>There’s no doubt that Kerr will be looking at a fine in the coming days, but many think that it was a strange call from the refs at the end of a tight game. Instead of blaming the refs, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-stephen-curry-blame-glaring-issue-nba-cup-loss-rockets">Stephen Curry took the high road</a> and blamed the loss on himself.</p><p>“The pattern of scoreless droughts down the stretch has to be addressed or else we’ll be a mediocre team,”Curry said after the game, via Anthony Slater on X, formerly Twitter. “I’ll take responsibility for not being able to get us organized and not being able to finish plays. Ball’s in my hands. I got to make shots.”</p><p>The Warriors have had hiccups on offense throughout the season, but the hope is that they don’t become a natural occurrence.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Warriors’ Gary Payton II makes ‘dumb’ admission after collapse vs. Rockets

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/gary-payton-ii-surprise-start-jonathan-kuminga-is-proof-warriors-concept');   ga('set', 'title', 'Gary Payton II’s surprise start for Jonathan Kuminga is proof of Warriors’ concept');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Warriors-news-Gary-Payton-IIs-surprise-start-for-Jonathan-Kuminga-is-proof-of-Dubs-concept.jpg"></figure><h1>Gary Payton II’s surprise start for Jonathan Kuminga is proof of Warriors’ concept</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-11-04T19:22:48-08:00">November 4th, 7:22pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-11-05T09:08:15-08:00">November 5th, 9:08am</time><address><a>Jack Winter</a>Jack Winter is a veteran NBA writer and editor based on the West Coast. He currently lives in Oakland, covering the Golden State Warriors.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Golden State Warriors entered Saturday’s action leading the NBA by averaging a whopping 61 bench points per game. Though they fell one point shy of that mind-blowing number while beating the Washington Wizards <a href="https://www.nba.com/game/gsw-vs-was-0022400155/box-score" rel="noopener">125-112</a>, don’t be surprised if the Dubs’ reserves are even more productive going forward given Jonathan Kuminga’s new role.</p><p>Despite Stephen Curry returning to the lineup after missing the last three games with a sprained left ankle, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-steve-kerr-shakes-up-lineup-with-gary-payton-ii-jonathan-kuminga-twist">Kuminga once again found himself</a> on the bench for tipoff in the nation’s capital. Gary Payton II replaced Kuminga alongside the Warriors’ four cemented starters of Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis against the Wizards.</p><p>Though he ended up playing just 16 minutes and didn’t even start the second half as Kerr toggled the rotation, Payton’s surprise insertion as a starter was nevertheless proof of concept of what it will take for the Warriors to make good on their stellar start to the regular season.</p><h2><b>Why little things loom so large for Gary Payton II, Warriors</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Warriors-Steve-Kerr-and-Gary-Payton-II-react-during-a-game-against-the-Jazz.jpg"><figcaption>Rob Gray-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The first possession of Monday’s game immediately revealed why it seemed odd—on the surface, at least—for the Warriors to replace Kuminga in their season-long starting five with Payton.</p><p>Kerr has fondly referred to Payton as a “6’2 power forward” for years, alluding to the veteran’s keen ability to finish, defend, screen and rebound like a player who typically stands at least half a foot taller.</p><p>But that unique positional designation also points to the lack of perimeter skills that pretty much every other player across the league of Payton’s size possesses. In Saturday’s game, on one play, Jordan Poole abandoned him in the strong-side corner as Green caught the ball at the elbow, leaving Payton all by himself before the ball gets back to Curry for a splash.</p><p>Kerr repeatedly used the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-steve-kerr-reveals-why-benched-jonathan-kuminga">Dubs’ lack of spacing</a> in lineups featuring Kuminga, Green and Jackson-Davis as justification for the former’s initial benching as Curry nursed his sprained ankle. Kuminga is a more frequent, versatile and reliable long-range shooter than Payton, not to mention a more threatening attacker while eating space in front of him off the bounce.</p><p>If the Wizards were so comfortable completely ignoring Payton on the game’s first possession just one pass away from the primary action, how exactly would his presence make life easier for the starters than Kuminga’s?</p><p>Defense looms large to that equation, obviously, but Payton’s spot in the starting five against Washington came down to more than his years of familiarity checking Poole.</p><p>Payton’s rare passing and screening mind meld with Curry stands second only to Green’s among the Warriors. He’s the type of low-usage, quick-thinking “connector” a hopeful star like Kuminga never had a real chance of becoming, always managing to keep Golden State’s halfcourt offense humming despite his obvious limitations as a shooter.</p><p>Literally no time is wasted before Payton heads backdoor for a layup on one third-quarter trip, his 45 cut even coming before Poole commits to meeting Curry on the other side of Green’s hand-off.</p><p>Kuminga has taken strides moving without the ball this season. A driving factor behind his much-improved play with Curry sidelined was Kuminga making faster, more pointed decisions, beginning to embrace “.5 basketball” like his more veteran teammates have en masse so far.</p><p>Yet as much as he’s expanded his game since entering the league, Kuminga can still only tap so far into the intuitive two-way grunt work that helped Payton find a lasting NBA home in Golden State.</p><p>This consecutive offensive sequence from the second quarter of Saturday’s game seems simple enough, but Payton might be the only player on the roster capable of regularly stringing it together.</p><figure class="op-interactive"></figure><figure class="op-interactive"></figure><figure class="op-interactive"></figure><p>It’s not just floor spacing that makes Kuminga a tough on-court fit next to a pair of nonshooting bigs.</p><p>His <a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/on-off/nba/player?Season=2024-25&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;TeamId=1610612744&amp;PlayerId=201939" rel="noopener">usage rate ballooning</a> for the second year running while playing without Curry is justification enough to bring Kuminga off the bench. The stagnant nature of Golden State’s halfcourt offense to open games before Curry went down with his injury served as confirmation bias of that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/predicting-warriors-2024-25-starting-lineup-after-jonathan-kuminga-decision">bygone starting five’s presumed deficiencies</a>.</p><p>When Kuminga and Green share the floor together, the Dubs are clearly at their best playing small up front—an approach the 34-year-old hopes to avoid for extended stretches this season.</p><p>Plugging and playing Payton alongside Curry, Wiggins, Green and Jackson-Davis is no panacea. The full-strength Warriors are bound to change their starting lineup again as 2024-25 continues.</p><p>If you’re wondering why Kerr and the coaching staff believe Golden State functions better with Payton taking the starting spot that used to be Kuminga’s, though, pay extra close attention to the little things.</p><p>Juggernaut days of the dynasty are long gone, even with the Dubs racing out to a dominant 6-1 start ahead of Wednesday’s clash with the defending-champion Boston Celtics. Living up to it by making real noise in the playoffs come spring will take a blend of chemistry, continuity and connectivity that Golden State’s level of top-end talent just can’t come close to matching.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Gary Payton II’s surprise start for Jonathan Kuminga is proof of Warriors’ concept

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/warriors-news-steve-kerr-shakes-up-lineup-with-gary-payton-ii-jonathan-kuminga-twist');   ga('set', 'title', 'Warriors’ Steve Kerr shakes up lineup with Gary Payton II, Jonathan Kuminga twist');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/warriors-starters-vs-wizards.jpg"></figure><h1>Warriors’ Steve Kerr shakes up lineup with Gary Payton II, Jonathan Kuminga twist</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-11-04T15:57:08-08:00">November 4th, 3:57pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-11-04T16:06:25-08:00">November 4th, 4:06pm</time><address><a>Jack Winter</a>Jack Winter is a veteran NBA writer and editor based on the West Coast. He currently lives in Oakland, covering the Golden State Warriors.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Golden State Warriors</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Golden State Warriors still aren’t quite back at full-strength.</p><p>De’Anthony Melton remains sidelined on Monday in the nation’s capital, dealing with nagging low back pain that caused him to miss most of last season with the Philadelphia 76ers and reared its ugly head again in mid-October amid the Warriors’ exhibition slate. Golden State has enough quality depth to take an ultra cautious approach to his playing status. Don’t expect to see Melton back on the floor until the discomfort in his back is minimal to nonexistent.</p><p>No matter when he returns to the lineup, Melton probably won’t re-emerge as a candidate to start for the mostly healthy Warriors, either. Yet less than two weeks into 2024-25, it’s become clear Golden State’s starting five could be subject to continued change going forward.</p><p>With Stephen Curry available on Monday after <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1853571239627145535" rel="noopener">recovering from a sprained left ankle</a>, the Warriors are starting Andrew Wiggins, Gary Payton II, Draymond Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis against the Washington Wizards alongside the two-time MVP. Conspicuously absent from that group is Jonathan Kuminga, who started in Payton’s place at his preferred position of small forward over the first three games of the regular season.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Tonight’s starters ⤵️ <a href="https://t.co/CjiQkVpD2s">pic.twitter.com/CjiQkVpD2s</a></p><p>— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) <a href="https://twitter.com/warriors/status/1853585034017697890?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p></figure><h2>Is Jonathan Kuminga bound to Warriors’ bench for good?</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Warriors-Jonathan-Kuminga-dribbles-against-Clippers.jpg"><figcaption>D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>There’s no denying that Kuminga has played his best basketball of the young season as a reserve. He’s averaging 18.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, two assists and one steal while coming off the bench, shooting 51.4% overall and 42.9% on 2.3 three-point attempts per game—a blend of production and efficiency that stands in stark contrast to his ugly numbers while starting.</p><p><a href="https://www.pbpstats.com/on-off/nba/player?Season=2024-25&amp;SeasonType=Regular%2BSeason&amp;TeamId=1610612744&amp;PlayerId=201939" rel="noopener">Kuminga’s usage</a> has ballooned to alpha-dog levels this season when playing without Curry, too, a trend that dates back to 2023-24. As much as he and Green so staunchly believe in his star future at small forward, you don’t need Kerr’s nine championship rings to know that Kuminga’s at his best right now as a four.</p><p>His sample size as a starter and reserve is tiny either way. It’s also hardly surprising both player and team would need some time before fully acclimating to Kuminga starting on the wing.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-steve-kerr-reveals-why-benched-jonathan-kuminga">Kerr alluded</a> to that reality while explaining the decision to bring the 22-year-old off the bench after the Dubs’ convincing win over the New Orleans Pelicans on October 29th, the first game Curry missed and one of two for which Wiggins joined he and Melton in street clothes.</p><p>“Well without Steph and Wiggs, I didn’t want to start Trayce, Draymond and JK. I wanted a little more spacing,” he said. “…All it is is just shuffling the lineup to try and get the right five-man grouping on there. But without Steph and Wiggs, to me it didn’t make sense to start the three bigs without those guards.”</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/jonathan-kuminga-surprise-benching-sparks-season-best-performance-warriors-win-pelicans">two-way prowess Kuminga</a> put on display in that first matchup with New Orleans was just as evident for another win over the Pelicans 24 hours later, not to mention the driving force behind the Warriors holding on for an absolutely wild overtime victory against the Houston Rockets on Saturday.</p><p>Kuminga finished with season-highs of 23 points and six rebounds in H-Town, shooting 7-of-12 overall, 2-of-3 from deep and 7-of-10 at the free throw line. It was one of the most patient yet assertive offensive performances of his career, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/jonathan-kuminga-brandin-podziemski-rescue-warriors-from-embarrassing-loss-to-rockets">Kuminga routinely identifying</a> his specific advantage then working quickly to exploit it. That overtime scoring binge got the most attention and rightfully so, but his dogged individual defense on Jalen Green helped keep the Rockets’ leading scorer from ever finding a groove, too.</p><p>“He’s been great. This is the third game in a row he’s come off the bench and these were his three best games,” Kerr said of Kuminga after the game. “I think the way he’s responded to a role change is perfect. That’s what we expect. The professionalism, the force that he brought, coming off the bench and playing the way he has is a huge sign of growth. Couldn’t be more proud of JK.”</p><p>Kuminga didn’t hide his initial frustration at being moved back to the bench. While stressing that his mindset won’t change regardless and how team success always looms largest, it was still obvious he was miffed by being pulled from the starting lineup so soon after the deadline for rookie-scale contract extensions came and went without him signing a new deal.</p><p>What a testament to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-draymond-green-sends-jonathan-kuminga-message-benching">Kuminga’s growing maturity</a> that he didn’t let any of that resentment fester onto the floor while Curry was out. The next step is ensuring that remains the case across the 82-game grind, as Kuminga’s former stranglehold on a starting spot seems more tenuous than ever with Payton in the opening five against Washington.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Warriors’ Steve Kerr shakes up lineup with Gary Payton II, Jonathan Kuminga twist

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/warriors-news-brandin-podziemski-identifies-gary-payton-iis-twin-brother-on-roster');   ga('set', 'title', 'Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski identifies Gary Payton II’s ‘twin brother’ on roster');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Warriors-news-Brandin-Podziemski-identifies-Gary-Payton-II-twin-brother-on-roster.jpg"></figure><h1>Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski identifies Gary Payton II’s ‘twin brother’ on roster</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-02T21:09:56-07:00">October 2nd, 9:09pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-02T21:09:56-07:00">October 2nd, 9:09pm</time><address><a href="https://letterboxd.com/splooshpuhrty/films/by/your-rating/">Jedd Pagaduan</a>Jedd Pagaduan is a certified Clippers and Gunners fan, which means he's a very sports-traumatized individual. He now writes about sports instead as a form of therapy.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Golden State Warriors, in the aftermath of franchise legend Klay Thompson’s departure in free agency, decided to return to their “Strength in Numbers” ethos. They signed multiple key pieces in De’Anthony Melton, Buddy Hield, and Kyle Anderson as they look towards filling the void Thompson left as a collective. Brandin Podziemski, in particular, appears <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-news-brandin-podziemski-details-new-energy-before-training-camp">headed for a breakout sophomore season</a> considering the huge role he’s about to play for the Dubs.</p><p>But again, Podziemski is not about to do it by his lonesome. He will get plenty of help from the Warriors’ impressive guard depth, and they appear to be getting back to their stifling perimeter defense roots. The Dubs already had one of the best guard defenders in basketball in Gary Payton II, but then they added Melton — a pairing that Podziemski <a href="https://twitter.com/957thegame/status/1841646426092446053" rel="noopener">has been impressed with</a> at the start of training camp.</p><p>“[Melton’s defense has] been good. Feel like he could be twin brothers with Gary. They both kinda look the same. Both love defense,” Podziemski told reporters during training camp, via 95.7 The Game on X (formerly known as Twitter).</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“It’s been good. Feel like he could be twin brothers with Gary.”</p><p>Podz on what he’s seen from Melton defensively <a href="https://t.co/Jy8uinjjCR">pic.twitter.com/Jy8uinjjCR</a></p><p>— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) <a href="https://twitter.com/957thegame/status/1841646426092446053?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Something has to be said for the Warriors employing an iron sharpens iron approach. Podziemski said that he is having to expand his game while being covered by stifling defenders in Melton and Payton, which could only be good thing for the Dubs moving forward.</p><p>“So for me, being able to go against that and vice versa, me playing defense against them, has been great. I think the better they are defensively now, the better it makes guys like me and [Stephen Curry] during the regular season,” Podziemski added.</p><p>The best part about the Warriors’ backcourt depth is that there seems to be no skillset overlap among their players. Everyone can make each other better at certain areas, and head coach Steve Kerr will have the luxury to mix and match depending on matchups. The Dubs already seem to be reaping the rewards of training camp.</p><h2><b>Stephen Curry and Brandin Podziemski lead the Warriors’ stacked backcourt</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Warriors-guard-Brandin-Podziemski_b08c7f.jpg"></figure><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/why-stephen-curry-warriors-believe-relevancy-klay-thompson-loss">Warriors’ title-winning teams</a> have always boasted quality depth, but over the past few seasons, they have been stretched thin, thanks in large part to the considerable financial investment they had in their core pieces. But with Klay Thompson gone, it freed up the opportunity for the Dubs to load up once again. They have as many as 12 players who can be viable rotation players for them next season.</p><p>Steve Kerr has always prioritized skill and system fit over size, which means that the Warriors’ backcourt will once again be looked at as a major source of production for the team. Stephen Curry showed during the 2024 Paris Olympics that he has plenty of gas left in the tank, while Brandin Podziemski, on the back of an impressive rookie season, seems to have all the runway in the world for a breakout campaign.</p><p>But behind Curry and Podziemski, the Warriors have an embarrassment of riches. Podziemski already alluded to the twin brotherhood of De’Anthony Melton and Gary Payton II; Melton provides more shooting and ballhandling than Payton does, but Payton is a better finisher and cutter. Buddy Hield is also around to provide some top-tier spacing, while Moses Moody could also provide some solid minutes for the team at the two if more size is needed.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski identifies Gary Payton II’s ‘twin brother’ on roster

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba-news-gary-payton-lands-college-basketball-coaching-job');   ga('set', 'title', 'Gary Payton lands college basketball coaching job');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NBA-news-Gary-Payton-lands-college-basketball-coaching-job.jpg"></figure><h1>Gary Payton lands college basketball coaching job</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-09-07T19:27:57-07:00">September 7th, 7:27pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-09-07T19:27:57-07:00">September 7th, 7:27pm</time><address><a href="https://haydencilley.wixsite.com/hayden-cilley-s-port">Hayden Cilley</a>Hayden Cilley joined ClutchPoints in August 2024 as a Phoenix Suns and Mercury reporter, as well as an Associate Editor. Hayden graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University while covering events like the 2023 NCAA Men's Final Four, the 2024 Vrbo Fiesta Bowl and the Arizona State men's swim and dive team. He recently covered the Phoenix Mercury for The Next Hoops and PHNX Sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Basketball Hall-of-Famer Gary Payton Sr. found his <a href="https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/41166128/sources-gary-payton-sr-new-basketball-coach-college-alameda">second collegiate basketball coaching job</a> on Saturday. He will be the men’s basketball head coach at the College of Alameda in Alameda, California, according to ESPN. Payton will make his debut after being the head coach at the NAIA school, Lincoln University in Oakland, California for the past three seasons.</p><p>College of Alameda athletic director Ramaundo Vaughn talked about why Payton is the right fit for his program.</p><p>“Gary Payton is the right choice for the College Of Alameda for a number of reasons,” Vaughn said. “Gary has always been a leader and winner. We know that Coach Payton will hold our athletes accountable on the court, in the classroom, and in the community.</p><p>“During the interview process, he spoke about having our student-athletes in the community, giving back. The energy and passion that he brings along with his genuine love for the East Bay is unmatched. The opportunity for our players to learn from one of the all-time NBA greats and an Olympic gold medalist is one that we knew we could not afford to pass up.”</p><h2><b>What can NBA Hall-of-Famer Gary Payton bring to the College of Alameda?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Gary-Payton-takes-over-as-College-of-Alameda-mens-basketball-coach.jpg"><figcaption>© Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Payton has more head coaching experience than one might think. When Ice Cube’s basketball league, the Big 3 formed, Payton became the head coach of the 3 Headed Monsters. He then coached another team, Bivouac for the 2023 season.</p><p>Payton has a resume unlike any other player in his position. The former Seattle Supersonics point guard <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/25-greatest-point-guards-nba-history-ranked">garnered his nickname “The Glove” for a reason</a>. He ended up as the first-ever point guard to win Defensive Player of the Year in 1996. His defensive tenacity and aggressive style led him to be a menace on the court.</p><p>Stories of Payton’s trash talk circulate all around the NBA. Former teammates Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal know what it’s like. People within the Big 3 know how Payton can start chirping. Even Payton’s own <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/warriors-gary-payton-ii-on-his-dad-trash-talking-him-as-a-kid">son knows all about his father’s trash talk</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Uncensored all-access footage showing how heated BIG3 games get with Gary Payton talking trash and coaching his team to a victory! <a href="https://t.co/eisOvb0I9w">pic.twitter.com/eisOvb0I9w</a></p><p>— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ballislife/status/1818393540965110221?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 30, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Still, it’s much more than Payton’s competitiveness that stands out as a coach. His IQ, pace of play and ability to break down a defense were mesmerizing, Even Hall-of-Famer Kevin Garnett <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2woYY7zzYEE&amp;embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwp.clutchpoints.com%2F&amp;source_ve_path=OTY3MTQ" rel="noopener">mentioned a story</a> on the All The Smoke podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson about Payton controlling the entire game.</p><p>As Garnett mentioned, Payton trash-talked to get advantages for his team. Although Payton might not be able to talk trash as much as head coach, he can still influence the game. He knows how to manipulate calls, run an offense and play a role effectively, something that the players of the College of Alameda would benefit from tremendously.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
4.7	2.9	1.3	0.4	0.7

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
4.7	2.9	1.3	0.4	0.7

Gary Payton

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Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski identifies Gary Payton II’s ‘twin brother’ on roster

Gary Payton lands college basketball coaching job

Gary
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