What we learned as Warriors kick off NBA preseason with narrow loss to Clippers

What we learned as Warriors kick off NBA preseason with narrow loss to Clippers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

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HONOLULU – Preseason basketball isn’t about perfection. 

The Warriors on Sunday in their first preseason game of the 2026-27 NBA season had their highs and their lows, finding a way to overcome a 13-point deficit for yet another thriller at the Stan Sheriff Center at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

A Lindy Waters buzzer-beater three called for a raucous celebration the last time the Warriors played here in 2024. Sunday’s game again came down to the final minutes, and even the final few seconds. But a Keaton Wagler step-back jumper with 12.8 seconds left was the difference in a 104-101 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Al Horford had their days done after the first half. Curry scored 10 points and drained two threes. Green swiped three steals and didn’t have any turnovers. Horford hit his first three but missed his next three shots from deep.

Charles Bassey (12 points), Brandon Williams (11 points) and Graham Ike (11 points) did their all to lead the bench in the Warriors’ comeback attempt.

Both teams displayed a heavy dose of rust and will want to look away from their shooting percentages, which is expected at this point of the calendar.

Here are three takeaways from the Warriors’ three-point loss to kick off their preseason slate.

Every player has his own unique welcome to the NBA moment. A reminder of the rules might have been just that for Yaxel Lendeborg. 

Fighting for a rebound on the Warriors’ opening possession, Lendeborg was reminded by a referee to tuck in his jersey after the ball went out off the Clippers. Lendeborg was the Warriors’ inbounds man, and after strong ball movement, the rookie splashed a three from the right corner for the first points of the day. 

Yaxel kicks off the preseason with a corner 3 👌 pic.twitter.com/PfjYhVycOh

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) October 4, 2026

The only other shot attempt Lendeborg took in the first quarter got swiped by Kris Dunn right as he went up around the rim. His size already stood out guarding Clippers center Brook Lopez, and Lendeborg had a game-high four rebounds in the first quarter. His biggest highlight of the first half came on the other end, when Lendeborg sprinted down the floor and swatted a Gradey Dick layup that went off the Clippers guard. 

Yaxel flies in for the transition block 🚫 pic.twitter.com/LNsEpWM4RP

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) October 4, 2026

Lendeborg played 14 minutes in the first half and grabbed a game-high seven rebounds. But he was stuck at three points on 1-of-5 shooting. He started the second half alongside Brandin Podziemski, De’Anthony Melton, Gui Santos and Charles Bassey, and played another five minutes. 

His shot, despite the numbers, looked solid, and Lendeborg’s length will be a real advantage. There also was an instance in the third quarter where Lendeborg caught a pass over his defender in transition and deferred instead of going right to the rack, which will be highlighted on the film review.

A sold-out crowd erupted more than an hour ahead of tip-off, and everybody knew why. Curry was walking through the tunnel to begin his world-famous warm-up routine. A mere look at the crowd by Curry had the arena going wild. 

Then came the game. When the Warriors last spent training camp in Hawaii, Curry didn’t make a single three against the Clippers. Two years later, he splashed his first attempt at the top of the arc off an inverted screen with Horford. 

Steph making it rain in Hawaii 💦 pic.twitter.com/XQP6lgensM

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) October 4, 2026

Curry never was going to have a long night in the first game of preseason. The plan was for him to sit in the second half and play between 12 and 16 minutes through the first two quarters. That number ended up being 13 minutes.

In that span, Curry scored a team-high 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting and was 2 of 3 from 3-point range. He also had two rebounds and two assists, but he was one of four Warriors to have two turnovers. 

Warriors fans will get their next look at Curry at Chase Center on Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers, but he’s unlikely to play Wednesday night in Portland against the Trail Blazers.

The Warriors are one of two teams to have six preseason games this year, and they’ll need every one of them. 

Their new 5-out offense was seen from the jump, with their first six shot attempts being threes. A baseline drive from Draymond Green that drew a foul was their first 2-point attempt, and he made both his free throws. As the first half went on, the wheels began to fall off. 

Steve Kerr has hammered home how badly the Warriors have to take care of the ball, but they gave up 10 turnovers for 17 points in the first half while not shooting particularly well. The Warriors’ defense struggled stopping the ball, and they had no answers for Rui Hachimura (21 points) or Darius Garland (15). 

As both teams rested their starters the majority of the second half, if not all of it, the Warriors’ bench and second unit took advantage. The Warriors outscored the Clippers 30-22 in the third quarter and 28-27 in the fourth, yet Golden State still fell a hair short.

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