Apr 3, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) moves to the basket agianst Los Angeles Lakers forward Dorian Finney-Smith (17) and guard Luka Doncic (77) during the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
We're only going to get so many more of these entertaining showdowns between Stephen Curry and LeBron James. We need to savor them.
Although we could get six or seven more in the first round of the West playoffs in a 4/5 matchup — and if Thursday night was any indication, it would be appointment viewing.
Stephen Curry dropped 37 points on the Lakers, outdueling LeBron James and his 33, giving the Warriors a 123-116 win on the road Thursday night.
STEPH & LEBRON PUT ON A SHOW IN LA
— NBA (@NBA) April 4, 2025
Curry: 37 PTS (25 in 2H), 4 3PM, 6 AST
James: 33 PTS (10-15 FGM), 5 3PM, 9 AST@warriors pulled out the DUB making it 4 in a row! pic.twitter.com/0qTxx2mY5H
This win was huge for Golden State, as it moved the No. 5 seed Warriors within a game of the No. 4 seed Lakers in a tight Western Conference. The Grizzlies and Timberwolves are tied for the 6/7 spots, just half a game back of the Warriors (one back of Golden State in the loss column). The Lakers are just half a game back of the Nuggets for the No. 3 seed, putting the Warriors 1.5 games back, and those teams face off Friday night in the Bay Area.
As great as Curry was, the Warriors won this game by winning the non-Curry minutes — Golden State was +8 with Curry off the court. The Warriors' other players also stepped up: Brandin Podziemski hit a career-high eight 3-pointers on his way to 28 points, while Jonathan Kuminga came off the bench with 18 points and nine rebounds, plus played fantastic defense at times on Luka Doncic, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Austin Reaves. Draymond Green also strengthened his case for Defensive Player of the Year with this performance.
DRAY COMES UP WITH A CLUTCH STOP pic.twitter.com/ie1a5p9dEE
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) April 4, 2025
On the other side, as J.J. Redick put it about Luka Doncic, "Wasn’t his night." Doncic finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and 7 assists but was 0-of-6 on 3-pointers and just did not control the game the way he has of late in Los Angeles. Austin Reaves had another strong offensive outing with 31 points.
The Warriors with Jimmy Butler in the lineup continue to look like a genuine threat to Oklahoma City in the playoffs. The Lakers do as well at points, but as Redick said, Los Angeles is still building its playoff mentality: ...
