Category: Basketball

Steph hilariously grades Draymond's ‘night night' celly against Knicks originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Everyone has the ability to improve.

Even four-time NBA champion Draymond Green, at least when it comes to his celebrations.

After Green used his teammate’s signature “night-night” celebration to culminate the Warriors’ 97-94 win over the New York Knicks, Steph Curry shared his grade for this rendition of his now-iconic gesture.

“[Green] has evolved his version of it since the Minnesota game earlier in the year,” Curry told reporters. “He’s softened it a little bit. He’s brought it down to where a pillow is supposed to really be. I realized he does everything aggressive and with his whole body.

“I’m giving that a solid A-minus effort on the “night night” tonight. That was beautiful.”

So, why not take a closer look at this celebratory evolution?

Green first debuted the “night night” — or perhaps now the “nightmare,” per Moses Moody — after his dagger layup to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves and longtime archenemy Rudy Gobert back on Dec. 8.

Draymond hit the “night night” on Rudy Gobert and the Wolves 😅

pic.twitter.com/qiMW47egGG

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) December 9, 2024

For comparison, here is Saturday night’s anticipated sequel.

DRAYMOND DROPPED A "NIGHT NIGHT" ON THE KNICKS 😴pic.twitter.com/UDPgczUAUu

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 16, 2025

Curry clearly has a point in noticing his teammate’s celebratory progress.

The ever-aggressive Green appears less stiff this time around, in addition to his improved hand placement.

Now, does Green match the aura of a vintage Curry “night night”? There might still be room for more growth.

But that shouldn’t diminish the menacing impact of Draymond Green bombastically wishing you a safe trip home.

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Warriors continue winning without relying on Butler's to score originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – As much as the Warriors have gotten better since acquiring Jimmy Butler III prior to the Feb. 6 trade deadline, they’ve found ways to keep playing at a high level on those rare occasions when Butler isn’t in top form.

Saturday’s win against the New York Knicks was a perfect example.

While Butler sputtered through one of his roughest shooting outings since the trade (3 of 11), Golden State received significant contributions up and down the roster on the way to a 97-94 win over the Knicks at Chase Center.

The bottom line – another Warriors win – was primary on Butler’s mind in Golden State’s locker room after the game.

“We’re winning so I don’t care about nothing else,” Butler said. “I can say it till I’m whatever color in the face. But as long as we win, I’m straight.

“The game is just simple. You just pass the ball to the open guy. When you’re open you shoot it. Somebody got a better shot you pass it to them. Everybody is doing it here and that’s why we’ve been stacking wins.”

To no one’s surprise Stephen Curry was at the center of everything that went well for the Warriors against the Knicks. Curry cooked his way to a team-leading 28 points with seven rebounds and five assists but was minus-five in a game that Golden State didn’t fully take fully control until the very end.

Butler didn’t have a terrible game by any means (11 points, six rebounds, seven assists) but didn’t show the flashiness or firepower that Warriors fans have grown accustomed to over the past five weeks.

It hardly mattered.

Moses Moody scored 18 points and continued to play well in his role as a starter after coming off the bench for the first three months of the 2024-25 NBA season. Jonathan Kuminga had 10 points in his second game back after missing 31 games with an ankle injury. Gui Santos made his second career start and added five points and seven rebounds.

Steph’s solid supporting cast against the Knicks included more yeoman-like nights from Quinten Post (five points, six boards) and Gary Payton II (six points, four rebounds) and Kevon Looney (six points, four rebounds).

“He’s always on a superstar level because even when he’s not scoring he’s still creating for everyone,” Draymond Green said. “He draws some double-teams, he kicks out and get us open shots. I think he’s always playing at a superstar level because his presence is always at a superstar level. When he’s making the right play and you get 18 (points) out of (Moody), that’s making up for some of that. Ten from JK off the bench, we can live with that.

“But we all know there’s going to be games where we need him to go score, and we know he’s more than capable and he’ll do that. What’s been huge for us is just him always making the right play. Always make the right play. He’s getting guys easy looks. You know who gets guys easy looks? Superstars.”

That is the essence of Butler.

Blessed as one of the NBA’s most electrifying scorers, his impact goes way beyond the boxscore. As Green pointed out, Golden State having Butler in the lineup has a domino effect on the rest of the Warriors.

On most nights, Butler’s shot is pure silk and he’ll put up points by the dozens. When his shot isn’t falling, however, he still finds a way to make an impact.

Since joining the Warriors Butler has been limited to six points or fewer three times. His 11 points against the Knicks were his fourth-fewest in a Warriors uniform.

Golden State is 4-0 in those games.

That’s a very encouraging and promising sign for a team trying to maintain its hold on the No. 6 slot in the Western Conference.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr called Butler a ‘connector’ and Curry agreed.

“He’s very good at just staying under control, making the right play,” Curry said. “You can tell he doesn’t really look to score as much right now because he’s reading the defense, taking whatever they’re giving him. Having the ball in his hands is usually a good thing.”

Make no mistake, Butler remains a scorer first and foremost, and he’ll do it when the need arises. For now he’s content finding his flow with the rest of Golden State’s offense.

“I’m not just a scorer. I can score whenever I want to ,” Butler said. “I can shoot the toughest of shots if I wanted to and, nobody’s ever going to say anything. I want to get everybody involved. I want to get guys in their spots. When it’s mytime you’ll know that it’s my time. But until then we’re going to pass the ball to the open man, get my guys some jumpers, get them out in transition, keep winning.”

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Payton Pritchard makes NBA history in Celtics' win over Nets originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

On Saturday, Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard set an NBA record that will make it difficult to vote against him for the Sixth Man of the Year award.

Pritchard notched 22 points on five 3-pointers in the C’s 115-113 win over the Brooklyn Nets. With his fourth make from deep, he surpassed Wayne Ellington for the most 3s off the bench in a single NBA season (219).

With 14 regular-season games still left to play, Pritchard has a chance to own the single-season record by a significant margin. It’s a remarkable feat for the 27-year-old, but it was business as usual for him after the historic performance.

“It just means I did my job off the bench at a high level, and hopefully I can continue to do that,” Pritchard said.

Pritchard isn’t focused on his 3-point record or the NBA Sixth Man of the Year award, which he currently is favored to win. He simply wants to continue his development into one of the game’s best.

“There’s no records, there’s no awards that I ever look at,” he said. “It’s all about self-improvement, looking at every game, what I can do to keep growing and keep bettering myself. Ultimately, that’s all that matters to me is trying to take another step. So hopefully I can keep that going.”

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla is proud of how far Pritchard has come since being drafted out of Oregon in 2020.

“If you count the the amount of timely shots that he’s hitting and the timely offensive rebounds that he’s gotten — he had one tonight coming out of the timeout when they went zone, in the corner, which just has an ability to impact the game in so many ways,” Mazzulla said.

“Just continues to get better and better. His competitive nature and work ethic’s unreal. So that’s an awesome thing and it takes a special person to fulfill that role, and he takes pride and does it every day.”

Pritchard is now averaging 14.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game this season with a 41.8 shooting percentage from 3-point range. He’ll look to repeat Saturday’s performance when the Celtics host the Nets for a rematch on Tuesday.