Atlanta Hawks guard Dennis Schroder led all scorers at halftime against the Golden State Warriors with 23 points. Shortly after the beginning of the third quarter, his night ended after playing nearly 24 minutes. Schroder and Hawks center Dwight Howard were arguing during play and Schroder missed his assignment, Stephen Curry, giving up an open three.
“While they’re having a whatever they’re talking about, [Golden State] inbounds the ball and they hit a three. Those kinds of plays can hurt you,” Atlanta Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer said when explaining why he benched Schroder. “It’s just staying together is the bigger point. We’ve got to stay together and find a way to move on to the next play and those things are important.”
Schroder served a suspension from the Hawks two weeks ago for missing a post-All Star break team meeting after being stuck in his native country Germany with an expired Visa. In his first game back with the team, he came off the bench in a loss to the Orlando Magic and was late to the team bus leaving the arena.
“He made pretty much every shot he took really,” Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry said of Schroder’s first half performance.
Curry didn’t think the absence of the Hawks starting point guard in the second half had any affect on his performance.
“It doesn’t matter who’s on the floor really,” he said.
For the Warriors, they’re dealing with games without star forward Kevin Durant. The team has now completed a road trip where the forward suffered his MCL Grade II sprain.
“Sometimes less is more,” Warriors guard/forward Andre Iguodala said of teammates stepping up in Durant’s absence. “For me, the team, we’re in a situation where we have to switch it up a little bit and be more assertive. So, we’re just trying to hold it down until K.D. gets back.”
The Warriors host the Boston Celtics on March 8 and the Hawks will also be on their home floor on the same date, hosting the Brooklyn Nets.
