Stephen Curry and Joel Embiid have both been fined $25,000 in separate on-court incidents from Wednesday's game, the NBA announced on Friday.

Reigning NBA Finals MVP Curry was fined for "throwing his mouthpiece into the spectator stands" during Wednesday's 122-120 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.

Curry was ejected for the act, which came out of frustration after not receiving a pass from Golden State Warriors team-mate Jordan Poole, occurring with 1:14 remaining in the fourth quarter.

It was the third ejection of Curry's career, all involving his mouthpiece, having thrown it at a referee in 2017.

"He knows he can't make that mistake again," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after the game.

Philadelphia 76ers center Embiid was fined for "making an obscene gesture on the playing court" during their 137-133 win over the Brooklyn Nets, where Ben Simmons returned to face his former side at a wound-up Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday.

The incident occurred when Embiid celebrated making a layup and earning a foul shot by emulating a gesture made by WWE wrestlers Shawn Michaels and Triple H.

Nets forward Kevin Durant, who was watching from afar due to an MCL sprain, described the act as a "trash celebration" on Twitter at the time.

Stephen Curry knows he cannot make the same mistake after his ejection in the Golden State Warriors' win over the Memphis Grizzlies, head coach Steve Kerr says.

Curry was ejected with 1:14 remaining in the fourth quarter for unsportsmanlike conduct, having thrown his mouthpiece in frustration after Jordan Poole opted not to pass to him before missing a three-point attempt.

The ejection did not hinder the Warriors, with Poole scoring a last-second layup to clinch a narrow 122-120 victory that moved the franchise up to ninth in the Western Conference with a 24-24 record.

While the loss of Curry was not detrimental to the result, Kerr knows the outcome could have been different and the NBA Finals MVP must avoid similar actions in the future.

"I didn't see what happened at the time, so when the ref called it I was confused," he said.

"Then the coach told me he threw the mouthpiece down out of anger. I think that's an automatic ejection. He knows he can't make that mistake again."

Poole was quizzed on the incident following the win, as well as his interaction with Curry in the tunnel after the game, but claimed he could not remember what occurred prior to his teammates' ejection.

"I don't even know what you're talking about, I have a short memory," he replied.

"We just kind of embraced a little bit [in the tunnel], he's our leader, we would have loved to have him in the game for the last three [minutes]

"But we just found a way to grind it out, get a big win against a really good team, and now we just want to keep that momentum going."

Kerr was similarly keen to avoid any unnecessary drama, highlighting that the victory was more important.

"Was Steph Curry open next to him? We won, let's focus on the positives," he added.

Steve Kerr was effusive in his praise of Jordan Poole after the 23-year-old led the Golden State Warriors to victory at the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

Poole scored 32 points as the Warriors won 120-114 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, with the defending NBA champions without star players Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.

Coach Steve Kerr rested them and others after their agonising overtime defeat at the Boston Celtics on Thursday, and was pleased to see Poole step up in their absence.

"He's continuing to grow and he's continuing to get better," Kerr said post-game. "In the last two games, he was fantastic... To play that way tonight without Steph and Klay and Wiggs and Dray, to give us that scoring and that force, he made so many plays out there. He set the tone.

"He's getting better and better. There is still so far to go, which is exciting."

Golden State did not particularly miss Curry as they managed to hit 23 three-pointers, the most they have ever recorded in a game without the eight-time All Star.

Poole acknowledged he and his team-mates had to learn from their mistakes against Boston, where they threw away a lead in the fourth quarter.

The Cavaliers also began eating into a lead that had been as high as 20 points at one stage, but this time the Warriors were able to close it out.

"It was a learning experience yesterday," Poole said. "It was something that we were very aware of. It kind of was a very similar situation, being up with six minutes left and then it became a close game. We knew we needed to lock down, get some stops and make a good run. We needed to close it out and we did. Now we have to build on it.

"Everybody on our team is confident, and shout-out to Coach Kerr for allowing us to play with that confidence. We know what we are capable of. We were spacing the floor and getting good looks. We got laser-focused."

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr believes a 72-game regular season would mostly eliminate the need for rest games after choosing to sit his stars against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

The Warriors were coming off an overtime loss against the Boston Celtics on Thursday where reigning NBA Finals MVP Stephen Curry played 43 minutes, while his future Hall of Fame team-mates Draymond Green and Klay Thompson both eclipsed 36 minutes.

Asking them to jump straight on a plane after the game and suit up again 24 hours later against the Cavaliers was too unrealistic, according to Kerr, who was apologetic about the fact that paying fans would not get the opportunity to see the headliners in action.

Speaking to the media before the game, Kerr made it clear these situations are avoidable if the league would be willing to shorten the 82-game regular season.

"I feel terrible for fans who buy tickets expecting to see someone play and they don't get to see that person play," he said. "It's a brutal part of the business. It's why I'm going to continue to advocate for 72-game seasons.

"You take 10 games off the schedule – it always feels like with 10 games left in the year everybody's sort of had it anyways. 

"That creates enough rest where we don't have to have some of these crazy situations. I think you'd see way fewer games missed from players."

He added: "We have so much more data, so much more awareness of players' vulnerability. It's proven that if guys are banged up, back-to-backs, players are much more likely to get injured and miss more games – and that's why you're seeing it league wide.

"Everybody is being cautious when a guy is banged up. You're just playing the long game."

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was emotional following his side's 144-113 drubbing of the San Antonio Spurs in front of a record crowd.

Officially 68,323 people packed into the Alamodome for the special occasion to break the NBA attendance record, previously set at 62,046 when Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls played against the Atlanta Hawks at the Georgia Dome in 1998.

The Warriors had eight players score in double-figures, led by Jordan Poole with 25 points on eight-of-16 shooting with six assists, while Stephen Curry had 15 points in his first win with the team since December 10.

It was an even more special night for Kerr, who was a member of the Spurs' championship teams in 1999 and 2003, with the home side airing a video package dedicated to him before tip-off.

"First of all I want to say thank you to the Spurs for the incredible night," he said. "Just the presentation of the game was spectacular.

"For me, it was a little bit of a trip down memory lane. I got emotional before the game when they played the video and introduced me – to get an ovation from 68,000 fans gives you chills. This was a really special night, and the Spurs made it special. 

"I think the reason I was feeling the way I did, is I know how fortunate that I was to be a part of the Spurs, and to meet 'Pop', and [general manager] R.C [Buford], and play with Timmy [Duncan], and Manu [Ginobli], and David Robinson, and Avery [Johnson] and Sean [Elliot] – the whole group.

"Just to be part of this team, and this community here for five years of my life, and to be embraced by the fans, and my family to be embraced here – my kids spent a good chunk of their childhood here. 

"This is a special place, and tonight was a great display of how special the Spurs are, and how special San Antonio is."

Draymond Green compared the atmosphere to college basketball's Final Four, which is usually played in a similar sort of stadium.

"It was very fun," he said. "It was funny, I was saying to somebody at the beginning of the game that it feels like you're playing in the Final Four all over again. 

"To have that experience – you never think you're going to be able to experience that again. 

"I think this is a great thing that the Spurs organisation has done, and I'm happy that we were the game and the team that could be part of it."

Klay Thompson suggested the Golden State Warriors paid the price for thinking "we'd just get the dub" as Stephen Curry returned from injury against the Phoenix Suns.

Curry missed 11 games with a shoulder injury but was back in the lineup on Tuesday alongside Andrew Wiggins, who had returned in the Warriors' previous outing after 15 games on the sideline.

However, the Suns defeated the NBA champions 125-113 after building a big halftime lead.

Complacency was an issue, according to Thompson, whose 29 points led Golden State.

"I think with Steph and [Wiggins] back, we probably relaxed a bit more than we should have," he said.

"We thought with them showing up, we'd just get the dub."

The loss was the Warriors' third in a row after a run of five straight wins appeared to have got their season back on track.

At the halfway mark in the campaign, Golden State are eighth in the West with a losing 20-21 record.

"We've been talking about it for a long time," said Curry. "Eventually, you have to do it or else time runs out.

"We have 41 games to figure it out – or else we won't."

There was at least cause for optimism in the fourth quarter, in which Curry, playing with a shooting sleeve on his left arm, scored 16 of his 24 points.

"It's hit or miss with how much rust you will have and how close you can get to the speed of the game," Curry explained. "The first quarter, it felt good just to be out there, running with our guys.

"I felt like I got stronger as the game went on. In the fourth, the intensity of the game picked up. We were playing very desperately trying to come back and make some plays. I felt like myself again."

Coach Steve Kerr added: "I'm hoping that fourth quarter was the team that I have come to know and love and recognise.

"But we have to show in the first quarter, not in the fourth quarter."

Klay Thompson recalled his lowest moments from an extended time on the sidelines after posting his best scoring performance of the season on Monday.

Thompson, who missed over two and a half years through injury before returning to the court last January, scored 54 points as the Golden State Warriors sealed an overtime win against the Atlanta Hawks.

The 32-year-old, who also had eight rebounds and three assists, made 21 of 39 field goal attempts and 10 of 21 from beyond the arc as the Warriors won 143-141 at Chase Center.

"It's better than good, [it's] amazing,'' Thompson said after his performance. "Those moments where you have the ball with the game on the line down the stretch and your team-mates trust you, those are what you really live for as a competitor, as a basketball player. It was hard to see those at times during the rehab process."

The defending NBA champions have struggled on the road this season, but their far more reliable home form saw them move to 20-18, with 17 of those wins coming at Chase Center.

Coach Steve Kerr was particularly pleased with the effort of Thompson, saying: "He just made shot after shot and play after play, he was incredible."

Kevon Looney scored the winning basket right at the final buzzer in second overtime, making up for a miss just prior, and laughed when asked if he had ever scored a game-winner before.

"Not a walkoff game-winner," Looney said. "I rushed the first one. I didn't think I had that much time, but I saw I had more time, so I took my time on the second one and I was able to make it."

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr concedes his side have hit "rock bottom" after conceding a massive 91 first-half points in their 143-113 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday.

The Nets' first-half haul was the third largest in NBA history, while the result condemned Golden State to back-to-back 30-point losses for the first time since 2001, having lost to the New York Knicks 132-94 on Tuesday.

The reigning champions were without Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins for the defeat, which leaves the Warriors at 15-18, with an abysmal 3-16 road record, ending their six-game road trip with just one win.

"Our spirit is fine," Kerr told reporters. "Our energy is good. The guys are committed.

"We're just right now at that point that pretty much everybody goes during in an 82-game season, most teams anyway, [where] you hit rock bottom with injuries, schedule, fatigued, whatever it is.

"You take it on the chin, the whole key is how you respond to that. I have no doubt our guys will respond but we've got to clean up the execution. Turnovers are a killer."

The Warriors trailed by as much as 44 points at the Barclays Center, with the Nets leading 91-51 at half-time.

Golden State gave up 21 turnovers for the game, with shooting guard Jordan Poole responsible for seven of those, finishing the game with 13 points on four-of-17 shooting.

"You can't play defense recovering from a turnover so that was the biggest issue to start the game," Kerr said.

"We were just trying too hard to make plays and getting out of control and then they made everything. They were phenomenal in the first half. I think they were 13 from 19 from three."

On Poole, Kerr added: "He forced it tonight. He got in a rush. We're going to live with Jordan's mistakes. He's a young player, he's still learning a ton. He's a great talent.

"Really proud of his development, but the development continues. Part of that development is having the best guy on him with Steph Curry out."

James Wiseman, who was second overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, offered a bright point for the Warriors with 30 points from 28 minutes off the bench, having had an indifferent season to date.

"James did a great job tonight," Kerr said. "It was fun to see him let loose and get some minutes and make the most of it. He did a lot of good things offensively… But when you lose by 30, it's small consolation."

Kevin Durant top scored for the Nets with 23 points with seven rebounds, five assists and four steals, while Kyrie Irving was absent with calf tightness. Ben Simmons contributed 10 points with four rebounds and eight assists.

Stephen Curry is in "good spirits" but will undergo an MRI on the left shoulder injury that forced him out of the Golden State Warriors' 125-119 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday.

Curry sustained the injury with 2:04 left in the third quarter as he attempted to strip Jalen Smith of the ball, immediately clutching his shoulder but continuing to run down the court.

The Warriors called a timeout where Curry was assessed by training staff, later heading into the locker room and being ruled out in the fourth quarter.

"He's going to get an MRI tomorrow," Warriors head coach Steve Kerr told reporters. "He was ruled out midway through the fourth. Training staff told me he wasn’t going to play the rest of the night. We'll see how he is tomorrow."

On the pain Curry was feeling, Kerr added: "I didn’t ask about that. I trust their judgement and they said he's not going back in. I just checked in with him briefly but haven’t had a chance to go into detail."

Kerr said 34-year-old eight-time All-Star Curry seemed upbeat in their brief interaction.

 "Steph is always a guy with a great outlook on life so he was in good spirits," Kerr said. "We'll hope for the best."

The reigning NBA Finals MVP had 38 points on five-of-10 three-point shooting with seven rebounds and seven assists until the injury ended his game.

Golden State, who slumped to 2-13 on the road this season, had fought back from a 74-54 half-time deficit but could not overcome the Pacers without Curry.

"Just stunning," Kerr said about Curry's performance. "He basically put us on his shoulders for the minutes he was out there.

"He was generating so much offense, he was getting to the line, he was getting the ball to other people, he was absolutely brilliant.

"I thought the guys did a great job of fighting throughout the third quarter before he got hurt and then after."

Curry is averaging 29.6 points on 49.7 per cent field-goal shooting and 43.2 per cent three-point shooting with 6.6 rebounds and 6.8 assists this season.

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr says his side needs to correct their defensive issues on the road after slumping to a 2-12 record away from home with Tuesday's 128-111 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

The reigning champions, playing in the first leg of a six-game road trip, were brushed aside by the Bucks, who were led by Giannis Antetokounmpo with 30 points, 12 rebounds and five assists at the Fiserv Forum.

The defeat means the Warriors are ranked 29th in the NBA on the road this season and have an 0-8 record on the road to teams with plus-.500 records. 

Golden State has also given up at least 114 points in every road game this season, which Kerr was quick to point out.

"In the road losses, our defense has been bad," Kerr told reporters. "For whatever reason, the splits are pretty dramatic. Our defense is pretty good at home and bad on the road. We've got to turn that around."

Kerr also pointed to the free-throws as an issue, with the Bucks scoring 26-of-32 from the stripe compared to Golden State's 15-of-19.

"It's basically the difference in the game when we lose," he said. "It usually feels like that's the difference.

"At half-time it's a 10-point game and they had 10 more free-throws than us, despite the fact that we weren’t shooting the ball very well, we weren’t playing very well, it was a six-point game with a minute and half left in the second quarter. We were right there but the free-throws are a killer."

Kerr along with Stephen Curry both received technical fouls in the first quarter, after a play where last season's Finals MVP appeared to be fouled by Wes Matthews as he shot a three-pointer, yet no call was forthcoming as Bobby Portis scored down the other end, leaving the pair incensed.

"There were several non-calls in the paint," Kerr said. "I felt like we were on the bad end of things to start the game. Steph Curry gets hit on the head on a three-point shot, that needs to be called. That's what he does. That's Steph Curry. You can't miss that.

"We were getting frustrated with some no-calls and it led to a pretty choppy night."

Kerr and Curry's technical fouls were two of five for the game, including Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer.

"I have no comment about my technical," Budenholzer said. "The game just had a really poor flow for a while. Lots of free-throws, delays of game, technicals, everything, the flow tonight was poor."

Steve Kerr acknowledged the Golden State Warriors "needed a game like that" after they ran out 123-107 victors over the Boston Celtics.

A Klay Thompson-inspired attack snapped a two-game losing run on their home patch, in a rematch of last season's Finals series.

It saw the Warriors move to 14-13 for the season and takes them eighth in the Western Conference after handing the Celtics just their sixth loss of the season.

With his side in need of a morale boost on the court, head coach Kerr acknowledged the performance will have done wonders for their confidence following a tough few matches.

"I thought we needed a game like that," he stated. "We've been a little bit stuck in the mud. The crowd was excited, we were excited.

"The feeling of going against the team you just played in the Finals, especially with the way they've played this year [and being able to win]. They've just been so good, so dominant."

While Thompson and Stephen Curry fronted up with hauls of 34 and 32 points respectively, it was the defensive performance of Jonathan Kuminga that drew plaudits from his coach and team-mates.

"I thought JK was great," Kerr added. "His athleticism and size and strength [is terrific]. To be able to bring him off the bench and put him on for either [Jaylen] Brown or [Jayson] Tatum [is great].

"JK has really helped solidify our defense and given us another weapon [where] we can put on the best players on the opponent."

Klay Thompson admitted he "fell asleep" as the Utah Jazz produced a stunning finish to snatch a dramatic 124-123 win over the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.

The Warriors roared back from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to lead by four with only 13.3 seconds to play at Vivint Arena.

Golden State paid the price for switching off in the closing stages, though, leaving Malik Beasley on his own in the right corner to give him the chance to land a three-pointer.

Simone Fontecchio then came up with a decisive dunk with 1.4 seconds to go after Utah forced a turnover from Jordan Poole.

Thompson held his hands up for not paying close attention to Beasley.

"I just fell asleep," Thompson said. "I watched the ball handler get to the rim rather than sticking on the three-point shooter. That was a dreadful mistake by myself."

Poole, who scored 36 points and provided eight assists, was at a loss to explain what happened late on.

"I heard on the catch, 'Look for the foul on the ball'," Poole said. "I don't really know [what happened], to be honest."

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr expects his team to learn from a shattering defeat.

"I feel terrible for our guys because they fought and they did a lot of great things, but we have to close the door," Kerr said.

"I thought [we] really fought and earned the right to win the game, and then we didn't close. And you've got to close.

"You've got to be rock solid with the ball. You've got to be smart defensively. We were neither of those things the last 13 seconds."

Golden State are 10th in the Western Conference at 13-13 after back-to-back losses, with the 15-12 Jazz four places above them.

The Golden State Warriors played their "best stretch" of basketball this season in Saturday's 120-101 win over the Houston Rockets says head coach Steve Kerr, as the reigning champions ominously made it five wins from six games.

The Warriors raced to a 39-23 quarter-time lead, inspired by Andrew Wiggins with a season-high 36 points and reigning NBA Finals MVP Stephen Curry with 30.

Golden State led 22-4 at one stage in the first quarter and did not commit a turnover until the second quarter, in an ominous sign from the reigning champions who improved to 12-11.

"It was a phenomenal first 18 minutes," Kerr told reporters. "I thought that was maybe the best stretch we've had all year to start the game.

"Then halfway through the second quarter, maybe eight minutes left in the second quarter we didn’t have any turnovers, we had like 16 assists, we were defending, rebounding, doing everything right and then we just lost our focus.

"That's our biggest challenge right now is trying to maintain our focus long enough to not give up leads and allow teams back in and I thought that’s what happened tonight."

Warriors shooting guard Thompson was rested for the game, the second of their back-to-back games, having won 119-111 over the Chicago Bulls on Friday.

"The hope is that he will play back-to-backs later this year," Kerr said.

"Today, he will go through really good court work to try and simulate as best we can what a back-to-back would feel like for him."

Wiggins and Curry both scored eight three-pointers each as the Warriors tallied 25 for the game on 52.9 per cent shooting from beyond the arc.

The Warriors became the second team behind the Utah Jazz in November-December 2021 to make 20 three-pointers in four of five games.

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr says the defending champions are playing "scattered" basketball after slumping to their eighth straight road loss to open the 2022-23 season.

The Warriors were brushed aside by the Phoenix Suns 130-119 on Wednesday, leaving Golden State with a 6-9 record, and their first 0-8 road record to start since the 1989-90 season.

Golden State's road start is the worst ever by a defending champion in NBA history. The eight-game losing run is also a tie for third for longest road streak by a defending champion in their title-defense season.

"What we have to do is stay with it and find it," Kerr told reporters. "In order to find it, we've got to get everybody on board, on the same page in terms of just worrying about winning and that's it.

"Right now, we're just scattered. It's a pick-up game. It's a pick-up game out there. There's no execution at either end. There's no commitment to the group to get three stops in a row to execute on offense.

"It obviously starts with me. I'm the coach of the team. I have to figure out a way to get that production, that sort of commitment to the team and each other and to winning.

"There's no collective grit. We lack grit right now. When you don't have grit, the game is really easy for the other team... It’s a Drew League game. We’re playing a Drew League game right now.”

The Warriors continue to struggle defensively, having allowed 124.3 points per game on the road this season, which is the worst in the NBA.

Phoenix were the sixth Golden State opponent to score 120 or more points in their 15 games this season.

"I think we're feeling sorry for ourselves and no one is going to feel sorry for us," Kerr added. "Everyone can't wait to play us and kick our a***. We've had a lot of success and a lot of fun and joy beating people over the years and teams don’t forget that."

Stephen Curry was a lone hand on offense, scoring 50 points including making seven-of-11 from beyond the arc, but the Warriors' bench only added 17 points collectively.

"It's not about stats. Steph could probably go and score 75 if he wanted," Kerr said. "I think it's not about numbers. Steph played well, and nobody else did. It's about the team, it's about the commitment. That's what makes basketball special and this team special over the years."

Steve Kerr hailed the "pretty amazing" performance of Jordan Poole as the Golden State Warriors routed the San Antonio Spurs but is not planning changes to his starting line-up at this point.

Poole had endured an indifferent start to the season but was influential in Monday's 132-95 win, which saw Klay Thompson rested.

Finishing with a season-best 36 points on the back of 13-for-20 shooting and five three-pointers, Poole was sat down with a little over eight minutes remaining and earned an ovation from the home crowd at Chase Center.

"Jordan was pretty amazing offensively," Warriors head coach Kerr said. "He got it rolling right away."

This was the Warriors' best performance of the season and one that sees the defending champions improve to 6-8 in a campaign that has yet to truly catch fire.

However, Kerr said any thoughts of bumping Poole permanently into the starting five at the expense of Thompson are a little premature.

"No, it's not something I'm thinking about," Kerr said. 

"Our starting five with Klay has been really good this year. The bigger thing is finding the right combinations off the bench."

Poole's performance came on an even more special night, given it coincided with the launch of his "Poole Party" bobblehead.

"I love it, it's absolutely amazing. It's my first one. It's really a special accomplishment. It’s an honour. I'm glad it came out the way it did," he said.

It was also confirmed on Monday that James Wiseman will spend some time with Golden State's G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors.

The number two overall pick in the 2020 draft had not played in any of the three games prior to the Spurs win, where he had two points, two rebounds and three assists in eight minutes.

Wiseman's career in the NBA has been somewhat stop-start with this just his 50th game in three years. Having appeared in 27 during his rookie year, he missed the entirety of last season due to complications from a meniscus injury - bar three outings in the G League.

Asked about the decision, Kerr said: "He needs reps. He needs to play. It's not easy when you don't get minutes."

Wiseman said he is not viewing the call as a step back.

"I don't look at this as a demotion. I'm just ready to go out there and hoop," he said.

It was a move that proved beneficial for Poole earlier in this career. He played 11 games in the 2020-21 season with Santa Cruz, averaging 22.4 points, and had some words of encouragement for his team-mate.

"I'm telling [Wiseman] this is not a demotion. This is not a punishment," Poole said. 

"I'm telling him to go down there and take 50 shots, be aggressive, get techs, hang on the rim, do it all. Just so he can understand what he wants to be at the highest level. This is just a step in that direction."

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