Before the Golden State Warriors host the Portland Trail Blazers for the 2020-21 season opener at Chase Center in San Francisco on the first day of 2021, Warriors Wire is rewinding through the team’s memorable matchups, standout performances and everything else in between from New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
Dec. 31, 2015
After winning the NBA Championship in 2015, the Golden State Warriors put an exclamation mark on the year with a win over their Western Conference rivals on New Year’s Eve.
With Stephen Curry on the sideline with an injury, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson stepped up against James Harden and the Houston Rockets.
Thompson quickly caught fire, scoring 38 points on 16-of-27 shooting from the field with seven boards and a block in 40 minutes. The five-time All-Star showed off his shooting from long distance, knocking down a game-high six 3-pointers on 11 attempts from beyond the arc.
While Thompson continued to score, Golden State’s other All-Star stuffed the rest of the boxscore. Green recorded a triple-double performance with 10 points, 11 boards and a career-high-tying 16 assists.
Harden led the Rockets with 30 points on 8-of-19 shooting from the field. Dwight Howard added a double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds in 35 minutes.
With their victory on New Year’s Eve, the Warriors moved to a league-best 30-2 record. The Warriors later met with the Rockets in the first round of the 2016 playoffs. Golden State advanced to the next step with a 4-1 series win.
Watch highlights from Green’s triple-double on New Year’s Eve via YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YIuVAQe_T4
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