Moses Moody was on fire in the fourth quarter when Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr suddenly pulled him out.
Kerr’s decision backfired as the Warriors completely collapsed down the stretch, allowing the Sacramento Kings to steal the win, 124-123, on a Malik Monk banked shot on Tuesday, November 29.
“Moses was awesome [Tuesday night],” Kerr told reporters after the loss that eliminated them in the In-Season Tournament. “We needed to get [Andrew Wiggins] on the floor for defense against [De’Aaron] Fox, and we decided to go with Klay [Thompson] and our vets. We thought about keeping him out there, but we made the move that we made.”
Moody scored all of his 11 points in the fourth quarter, with his last basket giving the Warriors a 116-114 lead with 4:55 left. Then Kerr yanked him out 19 seconds later.
Thompson, who had 20 points in the first three quarters, was held scoreless during his nine-minute stint in the fourth quarter.
After Moody went to the bench, Stephen Curry padded the Warriors lead to 119-114 with a 3-pointer. But the Kings answered with a 10-4 closing run capped by Monk’s heroics.
It was a sorry loss for the Warriors who led by as many as 24 points in the second quarter.
The Wing Version of Kevon Looney
Moody reminded Kerr of the Warriors’ ultimate role player.
“By the way, Moses was fantastic,” Kerr said. “Out of the rotation to start the game, I talked to him before the game and explained what we were doing. The guy he reminds me of [Kevon Looney]. Moses, he’s the ultimate Pro. He just continues to work every single day and understands. He embraces coaching, embraces the work. He’s a special guy. He’s like a wing version of [Looney] and that matters. That’s why he’s going to be in the league for a long time.”
Moody added two assists and one rebound in 13 minutes off the bench, seizing the opportunity when Gary Payton II and Chris Paul left the game with injuries.
Moody’s performance likely earned him a rotation spot moving forward as the injury bug hit the Warriors again. Payton II will be out indefinitely after suffering a torn right calf, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
Andrew Wiggins Fires Back
Wiggins let his game do the talking after ESPN reported that “some within the Warriors organization were annoyed of his lack of physical conditioning” entering the season.
“As for Wiggins, sources told ESPN that after missing two months last season over a still undisclosed personal matter, he didn’t take the time necessary during the summer to get back into shape ahead of this season,” ESPN’s Kendra Andrews wrote.
The maligned Wiggins was fired up against the Kings, tying Curry with 29 points to pace the Warriors in the loss. He shot 11 of 18 from the floor for his second-best scoring night of the season. He had a season-high 31 against the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 18. Unfortunately, both of his high-scoring games ended in a loss.
Against the Kings, Wiggins grabbed 10 rebounds for a double-double that went for naught.
Wiggins has only shot 50% or higher in just four of the Warriors’ first 16 games.
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Steve Kerr Explains Why He Pulled out Moses Moody in Warriors Loss to Kings