Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images
The last time the Warriors, who beat the host Lakers on March 16, won back-to-back games at Crypto.com Arena was in 2019. That was the final season of Kevin Durant’s tenure in Golden State. But the Lakers didn’t have LeBron James for any of those games. He was out after getting injured on Christmas Day against the Warriors, and Anthony Davis was still a New Orleans Pelican.
Take away the LeBron-less wins, and the Warriors’ last consecutive road wins over the Lakers came in 2017 — that window between the Kobe Bryant and LeBron James eras. The Warriors followed an overtime victory on November 29 at then-Staples Center with an overtime victory on December 18 in Los Angeles.
This Lakers team? Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Julius Randle, Kyle Kuzma and Jordan Clarkson, with 24-year-old Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and 29-year-old Brook Lopez as veterans.
One of the reasons for the Warriors’ difficulties: Steph Curry does not traditionally shoot well in this arena. With Steve Kerr as coach since the start of the championship era, Curry played 18 road games against the Lakers, including last year’s playoffs. He averaged 22.6 points on 41.2 percent shooting. He made just 52 of 177 three-pointers (29.4 percent).
Conversely, during Curry’s 18 games in the same period, in the same building, but against the Clippers, he scored on average 26.7 points with 49.5% shooting success. He shot 73 of 179 from deep (40.8 percent).
Curry’s best games on the road against the Lakers came against Kobe. Curry has only reached the top 30 seven times in this building against the Lakers, including three against Kobe’s Lakers. These three games are the only times Curry made 5 or more threes. Curry’s biggest shot against the Lakers in this building: April 12, 2013. He scored 47, making nine threes in a two-point loss. He almost made the greatest shot of his life that game, his buzzer-beater from about 80 feet tilting off the glass before going out.
