Nuggets vs. Warriors: What to watch for

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Programming note: Nuggets-Warriors coverage begins at 7 p.m. with Warriors Pregame Live on CSN Bay Area. Stick around after the final horn for Warriors Postgame Live!

The Warriors are coming off their most lopsided loss of the seasona 101-77 defeat to the Lakers in L.A. They struggled in just about every phase of the game, but none more than shooting. As a team the Warriors shot 33.7 percent from the field, with both their inside and outside games failing them.The Nuggets have rebounded from an 0-3 start to win three in a row, and theyre coming to Oracle Arena on Saturday coming off a 104-84 blowout win over Utah in Denver.Here are some things to watch for in Saturday nights game:Depth on depth: The Warriors depth is certainly improved this year with Jarrett Jack and Carl Landry coming off their bench. But the Nuggets also have a solid bench, and they rely on it heavily.Andre Miller, Corey Brewer and JaVale McGee give the Nuggets plenty of weapons off the bench, and thats important on a night like Saturday when both teams are playing their second of back-to-back games.Find Faried: Kenneth Faried is a relentless rebounder and high-energy player and he had a career game against the Warriors a season ago.Faried had 27 pointson 12-for-18 shootingand 17 rebounds in the Nuggets 123-84 victory over the Warriors last April. Faried, in his second year, might be a touch undersized for the power forward position, but his activity and effort mitigate any kind of size disadvantage.Warriors power forward David Lee is going to have to keep Faried off the offensive glass and occupy him fully at the offensive end.Curry vs. Felton: Stephen Curry and Ty Lawson are the long-term point guards for the Warriors and Nuggets, respectively. This offseason, the Warriors gave Curry four-year, 44 million contract, while the Nuggets gave Lawson a four-year, 48 million deal.BUCHER: Why'd they do it?
While Curry and Lawson are certainly different players, there is not much that separates them talent-wise. You could probably find just as many people who prefer Lawson over Curry as prefer Curry over Lawson.Last season Lawson averaged 16.4 points and 6.6 assists per game, while shooting 48.8 percent from the floor. Curry is certainly a better shooter than Lawson, but Lawson makes up that percentage-wise by getting to the bucket more.With Curry back at 100 percent after an ankle injury a year ago, this should be a good matchup to watch.

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