Player grades: Warriors vs. Wizards

At times it was ugly, and at times it was brilliant. But in the end, it was the most important thing: victorious. The Golden State Warriors beat the Washington Wizards 135-126 on Monday night, overcoming a 15-point deficit and then almost blowing a 20-point lead. It pushed the Dubs above .500 once more, and they’ll now have a chance to head into the All-Star break with a little momentum if they can beat the Los Angeles Clippers tomorrow night.

But for now, let’s talk about the game at hand, and grade the players, weighting for expectations. A “B” grade represents the average performance from that player.

Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. League average is 57.9%.

Draymond Green

24 minutes, 4 points, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 4 fouls, 2-for-3 shooting, 66.7% TS, +3

In many ways, it was an awful game for Draymond. He picked up his 15th technical foul of the year, meaning any subsequent techs will result in a one-game suspension. He picked up his third personal foul just a few minutes into the second quarter, which sent him to the bench until halftime. He picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter, again sending him to the bench. He didn’t grab a single rebound.

But we can forgive a little bit of that because of some his excellent defense. The Dubs likely would have had an impressive defensive game had Dray stayed on the court because of stuff like this:

Six assists with just one turnover is darn nice, too. But it was still a tough game from Dray.

Grade: C

Kevon Looney

31 minutes, 13 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 fouls, 6-for-7 shooting, 1-for-1 free throws, 87.4% TS, +11

What a dynamic game from Looney. The 13 rebounds don’t really do him justice given how many balls he kept alive that other players grabbed.

The defense was strong. The scoring and passing were sensational. It was the total package, and a reminder that when the Dubs can’t go small, they can always just play their starting center starter minutes.

Grade: A

Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds.

Andrew Wiggins

39 minutes, 29 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 fouls, 12-for-23 shooting, 3-for-6 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 60.7% TS, +21

What a phenomenal game by Wiggins. There are a lot of things that could help the Warriors find their momentum down the stretch ... Wiggins playing like this consistently is emphatically one of them.

His defense against Bradley Beal was strong, even if Beal still was able to score quite a bit. He crashed the glass, which he’s been struggling with lately. He swung the ball and found the open man, and was aggressive and efficient scoring.

And he had one of the biggest shots of the game.

The total package was on display for Wiggins, who almost didn’t play due to an ankle sprain. Thankfully he did.

Grade: A

Post-game bonus: Led the team in points and plus/minus.

Klay Thompson

36 minutes, 27 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 2 fouls, 10-for-21 shooting, 4-for-13 threes, 3-for-4 free throws, 59.3% TS, +2

Klay was massive in the second quarter, which the Warriors won 42-27, and he had 20 points at the break. His game has been more well-rounded lately, which allows him to still be such a big factor even when he’s not scoring efficiently. But he did score efficiently in this game, so all the better!

I thought he struggled a bit on defense, but still ... the Klay we’ve seen since the start of the new year is ready to be an impact maker on a championship contender.

Plus ... Klay dunk!!

Grade: B+

Jordan Poole

30 minutes, 14 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 turnovers, 4 fouls, 4-for-11 shooting, 3-for-6 threes, 3-for-5 free throws, 53.0% TS, -7

A fair amount of struggles in this game for Poole. He didn’t try to do too much, which was good to see ... that’s really cost the Warriors down the stretch lately. But he wasn’t efficient, and he had a handful of bad turnovers.

He definitely had some highlights and some huge moments, but all in all a pretty tough game, plagued by foul trouble.

Grade: C-

Post-game bonus: Tied for the worst plus/minus on the team.

Jonathan Kuminga

13 minutes, 7 points, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 3-for-5 shooting, 1-for-2 threes, 70.0% TS, +6

Kuminga’s in a stretch where he hasn’t been playing the cleanest basketball. There have been a few bad fouls, some dropped catches, and a few times forgetting to rebound. I think the All-Star break will do him some good.

Grade: C+

JaMychal Green

16 minutes, 14 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 5-for-5 shooting, 4-for-4 threes, 140.0% TS, -7

Green has found the three-point shot that was a staple of his career until recently. With a perfect game from distance, he’s now 18-for-32 in his last 12 games. Not only has that been good because ... you know ... points ... but it’s also allowed Green to slide into the power forward role and play on the court with Looney with regularity, which is an interesting look (and partially explains the suppressed rebound totals tonight).

Five assists in 16 minutes! A perfect night shooting! What a game from someone who is really starting to find their role on the bench.

Grade: A

Post-game bonus: Tied for the worst plus/minus on the team.

Donte DiVincenzo

25 minutes, 17 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, 6-for-9 shooting, 5-for-8 threes, 94.4% TS, -7

I feel like I’m getting very repetitive, but ... wow. DiVincenzo has really figured out how to be a massively impactful player off the bench.

Performances like this from DiVincenzo and Green are a reminder as to why trading for Gary Payton II was such a big move. It can take players a pretty long time to become familiar with the Warriors system, on both ends of the court. Acquiring someone who you know fits the system, and doesn’t need time to acclimate to it, will pay big dividends whenever GPII returns to the court.

I look forward to watching Payton and DiVincenzo share the court. What a defensively sensational backcourt that will be.

Also, DDV had the dagger three in this game.

And speaking of players who are shooting incredibly well from distance, he is positively on fire, and said he’s added a slight mechanical shift.

Grade: A-

Post-game bonus: Tied for the worst plus/minus on the team.

Ty Jerome

18 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 turnover, 4-for-5 shooting, 1-for-1 free throws, 82.7% TS, +12

What an impact Jerome has had lately. He’s been worked back into the lineup as the Warriors seek to preserve Anthony Lamb’s two-way days, and he’s been playing lights out. He was so in control of this game, setting up the offense, getting past the initial line of defense, and finishing with that signature push shot of his.

If nothing else, I’m pretty sure he’s earned himself an actual contract with someone for next season.

Grade: A

Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists.

Moses Moody

8 minutes, 1 point, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 0-for-1 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 1-for-2 free throws, 26.6% TS, +11

It was great seeing Moody get some run in this game, and I thought he played really well in the second quarter when the Dubs really turned things on. The stats don’t show much, but he was super solid on both ends of the court. Perhaps this will earn him some more run.

Grade: B+

Monday’s DNPs: Patrick Baldwin Jr.

Monday’s inactives: Steph Curry, Andre Iguodala, Anthony Lamb, Gary Payton II, Ryan Rollins