OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - The way Kevin Durant does it all on both ends for Golden State, triple-doubles will certainly come. They may not be flashy, and coach Steve Kerr might not even notice as the numbers accumulate.
Durant either.
He notched his first one since joining the Warriors with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists and first in more than a year, leading a 108-99 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.
“I thought he already had one,” teammate Draymond Green said.
KD’s eighth career triple-double was his first since Dec. 10, 2015, against Atlanta. Klay Thompson scored 17 of his 29 points in the third quarter and finished with five 3-pointers and Stephen Curry added 14 points for the Warriors.
“He’s so effortless,” Thompson said. “He does everything great. He’s going to be huge for us. We expect him to play at that level the whole year. He’s been tremendous.”
Harrison Barnes, who spent the past four seasons in a key role with Golden State, scored 25 points for Dallas against his old team.
In the first quarter, Curry (11,903) passed Purvis Short (11,894) for seventh place on the Warriors’ all-time scoring list.
Green had 13 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in Golden State’s ninth straight home win against the Mavericks, the Warriors’ longest streak ever.
There was some Curry vs. Curry in this one, with Stephen guarding brother Seth and vice versa for short stints.
Thompson has 78 3-pointers against the Mavs, his most against any opponent. The Warriors began 3 for 10 from long range but wound up 11 for 33. Durant didn’t even have his most efficient shooting night - 7 for 14 while missing 5 of 7 3s.
His stats sneaked up on Kerr.
“It’s just who he is. It’s just how he plays. He’s a great passer. Obviously he can score any time,” Kerr said. “He’s one of our best rebounders. A triple-double is just a byproduct of who he is.”
Durant didn’t realize it either until he took a glance up as he exited the court for good.
“It really means nothing to be honest,” Durant said. “Stats don’t really man anything. At the end of the game you want to play a great basketball game. … I felt like I didn’t force it. I wasn’t looking for it.”
Dirk Nowitzki, who had been questionable coming in with an illness, scored 11 points on 3-for-12 shooting in 23-plus minutes for Dallas.
“Once we started kind of getting out and running, it’s hard to outscore them,” Barnes said.
Reigning NBA Coach of the Year Kerr, for one, is ready for 2017 given his health issues following complications from two back surgeries last year that still affect him.
But he doesn’t need to change his routine. Nor his star-studded roster.
“I’m not a resolution guy,” he said. “I go to the gym every day, I don’t just go to the gym the first 10 days of January.”
TIP-INS
Mavericks: Ex-Warriors C Andrew Bogut was out for a rest day, not playing in back-to-backs right now. … Dallas is 4-9 on the road vs. the Western Conference.
Warriors: Golden State finished the calendar year 72-12 for the second straight time - the best two-year mark (144-24) in NBA history ahead of the 1996-97 Bulls at 136-30. … The Warriors had 13 turnovers after averaging 20.3 over their previous three games - and Kerr focused on it in recent days. … Rookie Patrick McCaw, brought back up after a day with the D-Leauge Santa Cruz Warriors, was home with the flu.
CURRY’S SNEAKER CAUSE
Two pairs of Stephen Curry’s special shoes were auctioned off to raise $45,201 to aid the Oakland Fire Relief fund following the deadly Dec. 2 Ghost Ship warehouse fire in nearby Oakland. The “Oakland Strong” shoes worn in a game by the MVP were taken for $30,101 by an anonymous bidder, while his pregame “Ghost Ship” graffiti-style pair went for $15,100 also to an anonymous bidder.
“I’m always very proud of Steph and all of our guys. They put some money together as a group, the team did, to donate to the fund,” Kerr said.
UP NEXT
Mavericks: Host Washington on Tuesday. The road team won both times during last season’s series.
Warriors: Host Denver on Monday, having won four straight at home against the Nuggets.
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