INDIANAPOLIS – A Warriors week that began with joy concluded with soul-searching.
The glum, quiet pall that enveloped the visiting locker room on Saturday in Indianapolis was a stark contrast to the jovial demeanor that pervaded the Warriors’ postgame news conferences after Monday’s victory at Chase Center.
What started with back-to-back victories over the Grizzlies and Clippers finished with Golden State losing two in a row.
Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors passes the ball against Pascal Siakam #43 of the Indiana Pacers in the second quarter at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Nov. 01, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
The loss to Milwaukee? Understandable. The Bucks were without Giannis Antetokounmpo, and NBA history is littered with examples of teams raising their games in small sample sizes. Playing at home, it was simply Milwaukee’s night.
But dropping a game to winless Indiana, who had six players out with injuries? A game where the Warriors had an 11-point fourth quarter lead with Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler on the floor?
Perplexing. Troubling. Infuriating.
Curry, who shot just 8 of 23 from the field in Indianapolis, took the blame.
“This is one of those look in the mirror (type of games),” Curry said. “There were parts of the game where I made it too hard on all of us with not getting organized, bad possessions or lacking energy.”
Coach Steve Kerr, who was visibly frustrated after the latest loss, did not mince words.
“There was no (postgame) message,” Kerr said. “Now is not the time to say anything to the team. We have to pack up, and fly home and regroup.”
Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) high-fives Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry (30) after Curry made a 3-point basket against the Los Angeles Clippers in the third quarter at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Turnovers, of course, were an issue. Sixteen in Indiana, another 22 in Milwaukee. No surprise there, as they have been problematic all season.
But after showcasing playoff intensity by holding the veteran Clippers to under 80 points, and pulling away from a young Memphis squad, the Warriors’ lackadaisical habits reared their ugly heads.
Sloppy defensive rotations one night, or just running un-focused plays on another. These were traits the Warriors could get away with when the team had overwhelming talent paired with youthful legs.
The talent is still there, but it is concentrated mostly in older bodies that cannot bring maximum effort every night.
It is a difficult problem to have during a long regular season, especially one with as rough a stretch as the one coming up.
After playing back-to-back at home to Phoenix and down the road in Sacramento, the team takes on Indiana in Chase Center before embarking on a six-game road trip through five different cities.
THE GAMES
Warriors 131, Grizzlies 118: Jonathan Kuminga’s breakout season continued as he headlined a balanced effort to start the week at Chase Center. Kuminga grabbed 10 rebounds and scored 25 points to go along with four assists. Al Horford sat out, but the defense was still able to handle Ja Morant and an up-tempo Grizzlies offense.
Golden State Warriors’ Jonathan Kuminga #1 brings the ball down court in the first quarter of their NBA game against the Memphis Grizzlies at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, Oct. 27, 2025. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
Warriors 98, Clippers 79: Jimmy Butler scored his 16,000th career point and fashioned a signature second-half takeover en-route to a 21-5-5 night during the second leg of a back-to-back. But the Green and Quinten Post-led defense was the story, holding James Harden scoreless in the second half and keeping an opponent under 80 points for the first time since 2016.
Bucks 120, Warriors 110: A classic letdown game after learning that Bucks superstar Antetokounmpo was going to be an unexpected scratch 30 minutes before tipoff. Curry scored 27, but it was former Warriors guard Ryan Rollins (32 points) who was the star. Kerr mentioned that fatigue from playing a sixth game in 10 days was a factor.
Pacers 114, Warriors 109: A baffling loss. The Warriors led 104-93 with six minutes remaining against a Pacers team missing six players. Instead of closing out what should have been an easy victory over a winless Indiana squad, the Warriors watched Quenton Johnson (25 points) have the game of his life and hand Golden State its second consecutive loss.
WHAT WE LEARNED
— Brandin Podziemski raised eyebrows for comparing himself to Shohei Ohtani and for having his fourth-year option picked up. But on the court, he quietly strung together four consecutive efficient shooting games, making at least half of his shots in each matchup. The defense and decision-making (the baseball pass against Milwaukee was baffling) are still a work in progress, but he’s been able to put the ball in the basket.
— Horford is strictly an off-the-bench option, at least at this stage of his career. Kerr said that the fifth starting spot will go to either Podziemski or Post depending on the matchup, and the coach had previously said it was difficult to craft a rotation with a starter who is only able to play 20 minutes a game. It was not the best week for Horford, who was a combined -32 in 40 minutes against the Clippers and Bucks, and only a slight positive (+2) in Indianapolis.
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— De’Anthony Melton will be training with the Santa Cruz Warriors G-League team. Coming off an ACL tear, the Warriors recently announced the combo guard will be re-evaluated in three weeks. Behind Podziemski and Moody, the guard depth is Will Richard and Gary Payton II, so Melton could become a much-needed contributor if he can stay healthy.
— Moses Moody is still getting his wind back after returning from a calf injury that sidelined him for part of the preseason and the start of the regular season. But one thing is clear: Moody is not afraid to shoot the ball. In just 70 minutes, the fifth-year wing has fired up 19 shots from behind the arc, making nine of them.
— Trayce Jackson-Davis is the team’s top rim-runner, but through the first two weeks of the season, it is clear that he is third in the pecking order when it comes to traditional centers. Fourth, if Green is considered an option at the five. While he remains the most athletic of the bunch, his deficiencies as a rim protector and floor spacer leave him a limited player at this point of the season.
