A clash of eras: Warriors school Clippers in the veterans’ game

At the Chase Center, it was the veterans’ game. A gathering of the once-greats now living in an NBA era ruled by youth and precocious talent. The Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers – the third and first oldest teams in the league, respectively – brought the experience, not the energy. The Warriors’ average age is 29.9, thanks to seasoned names like Stephen Curry (37), Jimmy Butler (36), Draymond Green (35), and the latest addition, Al Horford, who at 39 is still going strong. The Clippers, meanwhile, are even older after adding Brook Lopez (37) and Nicolas Batum (37) to a roster already featuring James Harden (36), Kawhi Leonard (34) and Chris Paul, who, at 40, returned to his former home from the Lob City era for what will be his final professional season.

Warriors defense dominates

It was a duel filled with talent – but also heavy with nostalgia, a relic of another time. The floor was packed with quality and pride, with players who, admirably, refuse to accept that their moment has passed. Yet the game itself was dull, riddled with mistakes and dreadful shooting percentages, ending in a commanding 98–79 win for the Warriors, who continue to soar in this early stretch of the season. They’re making the most of it while their legs still allow – before fatigue and inevitable injuries start to creep in. Because, as much as they try to hide it, time takes its toll. The league has changed, brimming with fresh faces and fearless kids unafraid to challenge their idols.

The Clippers, who led 49–46 at halftime, suffered a total collapse in the second half. They were outplayed in every facet of the game, missing shots in alarming fashion and scoring just 14 and 16 points in the final two quarters. The Warriors, by contrast, tallied 52 over that span and cruised to a 24-point lead. Neither team shot above 50% from the field, but the Clippers’ decline was staggering – especially from beyond the arc: 6-for-33 on threes, an abysmal 18.2%, a number that simply doesn’t win championships. As the errors piled up, Golden State methodically pulled away, staying in control without doing anything spectacular – just enough to punish the Clippers’ unraveling.

The Butler effect

Jimmy Butler was the outlier of the night, scoring 21 points on a superb 9-of-12 from the field and 3-of-4 from deep, without even needing free throws. Stephen Curry added 19, his reliable sidekick in a game where experience clearly outweighed youthful spark.

On the Clippers’ side, Harden had 20 and Leonard 18, while Chris Paul endured a miserable night – scoreless, barely involved, and posting a -11 in just 13 minutes on court. There were no flashes of past brilliance, none of the vintage magic from an era defined by sharpshooting and swagger. But there was still something special about watching this collection of aging stars – men whose careers have written some of the most remarkable stories in basketball history. And that, in itself, still means something. Especially in this game.

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Golden State Warriors

Stats

23 Draymond Green
1 Jonathan Kuminga
21 Quinten Post
10 Jimmy Butler III
30 Stephen Curry
7 Buddy Hield
32 Trayce Jackson-Davis
4 Moses Moody
0 Gary Payton II
2 Brandin Podziemski
3 Will Richard
15 Gui Santos
61 Pat Spencer
44 Jackson Rowe

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
23 Draymond Green	30	7	7	2	5	4	0	3	0	0/0	2/4	1/3	0	3	0
1 Jonathan Kuminga	26	9	5	1	4	1	2	1	0	0/1	3/9	1/2	0	3	0
21 Quinten Post	24	12	8	1	7	0	2	1	1	0/0	0/2	4/7	0	1	0
10 Jimmy Butler III	31	21	5	2	3	5	1	0	0	0/0	6/8	3/4	0	0	0
30 Stephen Curry	25	19	2	0	2	8	2	2	0	3/3	5/7	2/8	0	1	0
7 Buddy Hield	10	2	3	1	2	0	0	0	0	0/0	1/1	0/1	0	0	0
32 Trayce Jackson-Davis	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
4 Moses Moody	21	9	3	0	3	2	2	1	0	0/0	0/2	3/7	0	2	0
0 Gary Payton II	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	0
2 Brandin Podziemski	26	12	5	0	5	4	1	1	1	0/0	3/4	2/6	0	0	0
3 Will Richard	6	5	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0/0	1/1	1/2	0	1	0
15 Gui Santos	4	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/2	0	2	0
61 Pat Spencer	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/1	0/0	0	0	0
44 Jackson Rowe	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0

Los Angeles Clippers

Stats

5 Derrick Jones Jr.
2 Kawhi Leonard
40 Ivica Zubac
10 Bogdan Bogdanović
1 James Harden
33 Nicolas Batum
24 Kobe Brown
12 Cam Christie
20 John Collins
8 Kris Dunn
11 Brook Lopez
14 Yanic Konan Niederhauser
3 Chris Paul
19 Jahmyl Telfort

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
5 Derrick Jones Jr.	23	3	2	0	2	1	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	1/6	0	1	0
2 Kawhi Leonard	30	18	5	0	5	1	1	1	0	3/3	6/13	1/4	0	0	0
40 Ivica Zubac	24	14	13	6	7	1	3	0	1	0/0	7/12	0/0	0	0	0
10 Bogdan Bogdanović	9	2	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	1/2	0/3	0	1	0
1 James Harden	31	20	4	0	4	1	3	2	0	7/7	5/10	1/5	0	1	0
33 Nicolas Batum	19	3	6	2	4	1	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	1/4	0	0	0
24 Kobe Brown	5	2	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0/0	1/1	0/0	0	0	0
12 Cam Christie	5	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1/2	0/0	1/2	0	0	0
20 John Collins	23	5	7	2	5	0	2	1	1	1/2	2/4	0/2	0	0	0
8 Kris Dunn	25	5	4	3	1	0	2	0	0	0/0	1/4	1/2	0	2	0
11 Brook Lopez	19	3	2	0	2	1	0	0	0	1/2	1/2	0/4	0	0	0
14 Yanic Konan Niederhauser	4	0	1	0	1	2	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
3 Chris Paul	13	0	1	0	1	2	1	3	0	0/0	0/1	0/1	0	0	0
19 Jahmyl Telfort	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0