The Deficit Said Twenty. The Box Score Said Bassey and Melton.
Golden State erased a 20-point hole in Los Angeles by leaning on Charles Bassey, De'Anthony Melton and Will Richard, not on Stephen Curry or Brandin Podziemski, and that split matters for a team built around aging stars.
The Warriors trailed by 20 points on back-to-back Lakers runs before a 14-0 answer and a late 8-0 push turned a 101-89 win last night. Curry and Podziemski were on the floor for the collapse and the recovery alike; the players who actually flipped the game were off the bench.
How the Lakers got to plus-20
Two Lakers runs did the damage: 9-0 across the second quarter, then 11-0 spanning the end of the second into the third, pushing the score to 51-70. That second run built the 20-point hole that stood as Golden State's largest deficit of the night, with Curry, Podziemski and Yaxel Lendeborg all on the floor for pieces of it.
The response didn't come from the top of the rotation
Golden State answered with a 14-0 run that cut the deficit from 50-70 to 64-72, then a second push, 8-0 in the fourth, that flipped a 76-78 deficit into an 84-79 lead. The plus-minus board shows who was on the floor for that swing: De'Anthony Melton, plus-11 in 21 minutes with six steals, and Charles Bassey, plus-11 in 27 minutes with 12 rebounds and three blocks, led the team. Will Richard was right behind at plus-9 in 15 minutes. Curry finished at minus-3 and Georges Niang at minus-5 in 19 minutes, the two coldest numbers of the night. By the final five minutes, with the lead safe, the closing group was Dalen Terry, Graham Ike, LJ Cryer, Malevy Leons and Richard, the look of a finish already decided.
Grading the finish
Bassey's line carries the night: eight points on efficient shots, 12 rebounds, three blocks and a plus-11 in 27 minutes, starting in place of a resting Draymond Green. Melton's six steals in 21 bench minutes were the clearest two-way disruption on the floor. Podziemski was the most complete offensive performer, 17 points on 6-for-12 with three made threes and a plus-7. Curry's 11 points came on 3-for-9 with three turnovers and a minus-3, a quiet night by his standard, while Lendeborg matched Podziemski's 17 points but needed 11 shots and finished minus-2.
What a preseason comeback is actually worth
There is no race or seed on the line in October, and this comeback won't move anything but confidence. What it does confirm is that Golden State's depth can win a half by itself, one week before the regular season opener, October 21, against this same Lakers team, when the result will actually count. Curry and Podziemski cooling off and the Warriors still winning is the encouraging version of tonight. The version that should worry Golden State is needing Bassey, Melton and Richard to bail out the stars this often once games matter.
Did the Warriors come back from 20 points down against the Lakers?
Yes. Golden State trailed by as many as 20 points in the third quarter before a 14-0 run and a late 8-0 push turned the game, winning 101-89 in the preseason.
Who led the Warriors in the comeback win over the Lakers?
Yaxel Lendeborg and Brandin Podziemski each scored 17 points, but Charles Bassey (12 rebounds, plus-11) and De'Anthony Melton (six steals, plus-11) drove the turnaround off the bench.
