Player grades: Warriors vs. Mavericks

Assessing every Golden State player from the team’s 126-102 win over Dallas.

The Golden State Warriors have looked like a completely different team since acquiring Jimmy Butler III, and Sunday was yet another data point in their favor. On a nationally-televised game, with Andre Iguodala getting his jersey retired, the Warriors dominated and destroyed the Dallas Mavericks, winning 126-102. They’re now 5-1 since acquiring Butler, despite this being their lone home game during that span. And they’ve returned from the All-Star break with back-to-back 24-point wins over the teams directly ahead of them in the standings.

Spoiler: the players played well on Sunday. The grades will be strong today. But they still must be doled out. As always, grades are based on my expectations for each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.

Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Sunday’s games, league-average TS was 57.4%.

Moses Moody

27 minutes, 14 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 foul, 5-for-10 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 3-for-4 free throws, 59.5% TS, +16

I was so excited for Butler to join Jonathan Kuminga and teach him some things. I hadn’t really stopped to think too much about how he might impact Moody’s game, though.

It seems like the answer is a lot. Moody is playing the best ball of his career, which is primarily due to the work he’s put in, and the stable minutes he’s finally getting after the Warriors traded four players for one (all while Kuminga has been sidelined). But you can also see a big influence from Butler. This is far and away the most aggressive that Moody has played in his career, and you can especially see him bully smaller opponents in a way he never has — and in a way that Butler is famous for.

Moody made a name for himself as a youngster who quietly did all the right things, rarely making mistakes but not really having the ability to leave a big mark on games, either. That seems to be changing. He’s become not just a factor, but a force, both on offense and on defense.

Grade: A

Jimmy Butler III

28 minutes, 18 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 5-for-9 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 8-for-8 free throws, 71.9% TS, +28

If you need some stats that contextualize just how dramatic Butler’s impact has been on the Warriors, here you go: over the last three games, he’s committed one foul, turned the ball over one time, and shot 21 free throws.

Oh, and then there’s this:

This is Steph Curry’s team, but it’s Butler’s transformation. The Warriors are simultaneously more aggressive and more careful on offense. They’re an entirely new team on defense. And their attitude has a night-and-day difference.

Also, might as well just start naming the final minutes of the third quarter off of Butler, because he just completely takes over in that time.

Grade: A

Draymond Green

27 minutes, 13 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 5-for-10 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 3-for-4 free throws, 55.3% TS, +19

Just kind of vintage Draymond. Stellar defense, great passing, tons of attitude and energy. He looks revitalized, and fully aware of how good the Warriors can be with Butler in the fold.

Grade: A-

Brandin Podziemski

30 minutes, 17 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 7-for-15 shooting, 3-for-5 threes, 56.7% TS, +30

Quite simply a spectacular game from Podziemski. The box score captures that he did some good things on defense, scored a lot, and somehow finished with five more rebounds than any other player on either team, despite being one of the shortest players on the court. The box score doesn’t capture the impact his energy, hustle, and competitiveness had.

Podziemeski was all over the court. He seemed to have his fingertips on every loose ball and every rebound opportunity. He seemed to sneak a hip, elbow, or shoulder into every cutting Mavericks player to throw them off their line. He quarterbacked the offense.

Just as importantly, he drew the opening assignment on Kyrie Irving, who absolutely torched the Dubs right before the All-Star break. Podziemski was superb on Irving, who scored just five points in the first half, and didn’t start to put up points until the outcome was seemingly decided.

Podz is in the starting lineup to stay and, well ... that’s as it should be.

Grade: A+
Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds, best plus/minus on the team.

Steph Curry

29 minutes, 30 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, 12-for-20 shooting, 3-for-8 threes, 3-for-3 free throws, 70.4% TS, +14

Curry looks rejuvenated. By his own admission, the game is significantly easier with Butler in the fold, and it’s showing. He has more energy, more space, and knows he doesn’t have to do as much. And that, of course, making doing as much a whole lot easier.

He was a wizard in the first quarter, when the Warriors set the tone and jumped out to a huge lead. He was a dominant force in the third quarter, scoring 16 points and sending the Warriors into the fourth quarter with a 25-point lead. And then he got to rest for that entire quarter.

Brilliance from the chef.

Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points and assists.

Gary Payton II

11 minutes, 3 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1-for-2 shooting, 1-for-2 threes, 75.0% TS, -2

Payton didn’t make too much of an impact, but what a luxury it is to be able to throw him out there to defend Irving any time it’s needed.

Grade: B

Buddy Hield

18 minutes, 3 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 1 foul, 1-for-4 shooting, 1-for-3 threes, 37.5% TS, +19

It’s a sign of growth from Hield that he can play 18 minutes and only take four shots. And more importantly, still make a positive impact!

Hield didn’t do much in the way of stats in this game, but he brought energy and selflessness, played strong defense, and spaced the floor. On a day like Sunday, that was all that was needed of him.

Grade: B

Kevon Looney

13 minutes, 7 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-for-5 shooting, 1-for-2 free throws, 59.5% TS, +8

The Warriors matched the small-ball Mavericks for much of the game, but occasionally threw Looney in there to beat up Dallas inside. Looney did work in his minutes, bullying the Mavericks in the paint, controlling the glass, and scoring fairly easily.

Grade: B+

Gui Santos

20 minutes, 5 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 blocks, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 2-for-5 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, 50.0% TS, -3

They arrive at it in very different ways, but Santos and Looney clearly attended the same school of rebounding every ball that’s anywhere near them. Santos really just flies around the court impacting every play ... occasionally he has games where that makes him look a little out of control. But a lot of the time it results in games like Sunday’s, where he gobbled up rebounds and blocked shot after shot. His development has been an absolute joy to witness.

Grade: A-

Quinten Post

18 minutes, 10 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 3-for-9 shooting, 2-for-6 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 50.6% TS, 0 +/-

It feels like there’s a stretch in every game — usually the second quarter — where Post is part of a brilliant stretch by the Dubs. That happened again on Sunday, early in the second, when Post drained a corner three and then, on the next possession, dunked through two Mavericks defenders to push the lead to 21 points and force a Dallas timeout.

I’m enjoying seeing him come off the bench, where he gives the Warriors an entirely different look that seems to confuse opponents.

Grade: A-

Kevin Knox II

7 minutes, 4 points, 2 rebounds, 1 foul, 2-for-4 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 50.0% TS, -1

Steve Kerr was surely happy to be able to get Knox seven minutes of garbage time. The Warriors want a longer look at the veteran, who is on a 10-day contract and presumably in play to sign a guaranteed deal with the Dubs later in the season.

Grade: Incomplete

Pat Spencer

6 minutes, 0 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, 0-for-2 shooting, 0-for-2 threes, 0.0% TS, -4

I say it every time he plays, but Spencer always seems to find a way to put some numbers in the stat sheet, even in short runs.

Grade: Incomplete
Post-game bonus: Tied for the worst plus/minus on the team.

Yuri Collins

6 minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, 3 fouls, 1-for-3 shooting, 33.3% TS, -4

Collins made his NBA debut! He played his first NBA minute, scored his first NBA points, grabbed his first NBA rebound, dished his first NBA assist, and nabbed his first NBA steal. Those are accomplishments worth celebrating.

Grade: A+ for actualizing the dream
Post-game bonus: Tied for the worst plus/minus on the team.

Sunday’s inactives: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Jonathan Kuminga, Jackson Rowe