Name: Ugly defense overshadows Curry’s milestone as Warriors get blown out by Jazz
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Ugly defense overshadows Curry’s milestone as Warriors get blown out by Jazz

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This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateThe Warriors landed in Salt Lake City around 2 a.m. Saturday after their flight was delayed multiple times because of mechanical issues with the team plane.Forced to cancel shootaround so his players could get much-needed sleep, Golden State head coach Steve Kerr only had a brief meeting with his team to go over the game plan for a potential title contender. Asked pregame how he was feeling, Kerr said, “I have no idea what to expect.”He got a worst-case scenario.From the moment they tipped off Saturday night at Vivint Arena, the Warriors appeared out of sorts, slogging through a 127-108 loss to the Jazz that reinforced how much the young team has to learn.After digging a quick 14-0 hole, Golden State got within single digits by the end of the first quarter, only to be outscored 38-17 in the second and enter halftime down 30. The lone highlight on a night the Warriors hope to soon forget came early in the third quarter, when guard Stephen Curry hit a corner 3-pointer to pass Reggie Miller (2,560) for second on the NBA’s all-time 3-pointers list behind Ray Allen (2,973).The milestone, however, did little to ease the sting of Golden State’s second straight dud. In Thursday’s 15-point loss to the Knicks, the Warriors played porous defense and committed 26 fouls. Two nights later, they again struggled to stay in front of their men, allowing the Jazz to shoot 47.9% from the field (20-for-50 from 3-point range).Warriors CoverageEven when Golden State players did get hands on shooters, they were often left shaking their heads after watching a swished jumper. This is a Jazz team that has now won a league-best eight games in a row. With a deep bench, strong defense and multiple All-Stars, Utah is emerging as one of the Western Conference’s biggest threats.But in the NBA, teams know better than to blame a blowout the magnitude of Saturday’s on a formidable opponent and travel issues. Not long removed from when they overcame a 19-point deficit in Monday’s win over the Lakers and pummeled the Spurs in all facets of Wednesday’s rout, the Warriors must now self-assess, studying the film of their past two losses to remedy a once-promising defense.“We don’t have any continuity with this team,” Kerr said. “I think that’s been apparent in the early part of this season. ... We have to be able to build something we can rely on."Kerr spent much of training camp stressing the fact that, to contend in the West this season, Golden State must boast a top-10 defense. After forward Draymond Green returned from a foot issue three weeks ago, the Warriors finally started to answer Kerr’s preseason challenge as they posted a 106.9 defensive rating over a 10-game stretch — the sixth-best in the league during that span.3-point milestonePlayerGames3-pt.Ray Allen (1996-2014)1,3002,973Stephen Curry (2009-pres.)7152,562Reggie Miller (1987-2005)1,3042,560Kyle Korver (2003-20)1,2322,450James Harden (2009-pres.)8462,362But now, after giving up a combined 246 points and 31 made 3-pointers to the Knicks and Jazz, Golden State must try to rechannel the precision and tenacity that had been a driving force behind its recent success. To get the Warriors back to their winning ways, Kerr might need to tweak his rotation.Stephen Curry has not only led a Warriors resurgence since entering the league, he has changed the game with his long-distance shooting.Slow starts have been a common problem for Golden State this season, with the starting unit posting a plus-minus of minus-73 in 161 minutes. Kerr has been insistent that he wasn’t going to change that group. But when asked again Saturday whether he’s considering adjusting his first unit, Kerr said, “There’s no doubt that we have to assess everything as a staff, as an organization.”“Work in progress, obviously,” Curry, who had 24 points, seven assists and seven rebounds Saturday, said of the starting lineup. “The numbers aren’t great. Just trying to figure it out. ... We do have stuff to figure out, obviously. I don’t have the answers right now.”Such a reality should hardly be unexpected. At the start of the season, Kerr anticipated needing at least 20 games to finalize his lineups for an overhauled roster. Now, as they sit at .500 after 16 games, the Warriors are still figuring out their identity.“Sometimes we move the ball, sometimes we don’t,” Green said. “Sometimes we defend, sometimes we don’t. ... Are we going be a ball movement team or an iso team?”Connor Letourneau covers the Warriors for The San Francisco Chronicle. Email: Twitter:Stephen Curry has not only led a Warriors resurgence since entering the league, he has changed the game with his long-distance shooting.

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateThe Warriors landed in Salt Lake City around 2 a.m. Saturday after their flight was delayed multiple times because of mechanical issues with the team plane.Forced to cancel shootaround so his players could get much-needed sleep, Golden State head coach Steve Kerr only had a brief meeting with his team to go over the game plan for a potential title contender. Asked pregame how he was feeling, Kerr said, “I have no idea what to expect.”He got a worst-case scenario.From the moment they tipped off Saturday night at Vivint Arena, the...

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Senior NBA and sports enterprise writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Portland, Ore., native. @thedbk alum. cletourneau@sfchronicle.com

Connor Letourneau

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Ugly defense overshadows Curry’s milestone as Warriors get blown out by Jazz

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