A late-game scoring problem that led the Warriors to a ‘mediocre’ execution originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

After a promising start to this season, aided by a significantly revamped roster, the Warriors are relapsing into their two worst trends from last season.

Sales that are constantly being discussed.

And the late game collapses.

Both were seen in a 91-90 loss to the Rockets at Toyota Center on Wednesday night. This was the last loss where the Warriors were on their way to victory before making a U-turn into defeat. These surfaces can put a strain on the gut and perhaps the mind.

If Golden State’s coaching staff and roster can’t get their act together and shake off this debilitating pattern, the NBA playoffs, formerly the Warriors Invitational, will be played without them for the second straight year.

“The pattern of scoreless droughts down the stretch needs to be addressed or we will be a mediocre team,” Stephen Curry told reporters in Houston. “I take responsibility for our inability to organize or finish the games. The ball is in my hands, I have to make shots.

“But I think we can all look at certain sets that will give us better shooting opportunities knowing how teams are trying to protect us, especially in the last five minutes.”

The latest debacle came after the Warriors laid an egg in the first half and turned it to gold for most of the second half. They trailed by as much as 14 minutes in the second quarter, but took the lead by seven minutes with 3:38 left to play.

The offense then stagnated with poor execution, missed shots and turnovers in the final minutes. The Warriors committed 22 turnovers, which gave Houston 30 points. Seven of those giveaways came in the fourth quarter, giving Houston 14 of its 23 points in the quarter.

“This is our fault,” coach Steve Kerr said. “We didn’t score. We lost the ball on a pass from Draymond (Green) to (Jonathan Kuminga). After the first quarter and a half, which was a disaster, we had done a great job taking care of the ball. Dray has to make a good decision. He took the chance and threw it to JK. He has to get the ball back to Steph (Curry). He knows it. He feels terrible there.

“And I could have done better to move on to something else and try to take the pressure off Steph or JK. So we all take it. We all took part in that.”

Kerr was right to be angry with some of the referees, particularly a decision late in the game that contradicted the way the game was refereed in the first 47-plus minutes. But that’s not a pattern. Or even a developing trend.

The generous distribution of ball losses during the game and the slide into premature offensive droughts are more than a trend. You have entered the next phase, a pattern, and are spiraling towards a habit.

“We can talk about the referees all day,” Curry said. “That’s not why we lost.”

The fact that the Rockets were outscored 52-38 in the first 20-plus minutes of the second half, only to be outscored 9-1 in the crucial minute, is reminiscent of what the Warriors have suffered in the last nine games seven ended with a minus, all too often you eat the L.

An 11-point lead over Denver with 6:13 remaining turned into a four-point loss on Dec. 3. Scoring five points in the final 5:45 minutes doomed them against the Thunder on Nov. 27, and that came two days after a three-point deficit with 3:26 left meant an eight-point loss to Brooklyn .

This came two days after the Warriors scored 16-4 in the finale in San Antonio on November 23rd.

The Warriors have played 15 clutch games this season and lost eight, including six of the last seven. Last season, they had a 24-24 record in such games and missed the playoffs.

“We’re talking about it,” Curry said. “We are experimenting. This will be the deciding point of our entire season, whether we make it or not, because we play well enough to win most games.

“That’s a good sign and a bad sign.”

The habitual trend is a profoundly bad sign. For a team looking to make the playoffs and then be a real threat to the league’s elite, it’s as threatening as it gets.

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