In today’s Dub Hub:

The Golden State Warriors didn’t hide their frustration after Wednesday’s 104–100 loss to the Houston Rockets. Even with Houston missing several key players — including leading scorer Kevin Durant — Golden State still couldn’t keep the Rockets’ offense in check, and Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green made that clear afterward.

Second-year guard Reed Sheppard became the latest player to post a career night against Golden State, finishing with 31 points on 12-of-25 shooting and four made threes. It’s a trend that’s becoming hard to ignore, as opposing guards continue to find rhythm and confidence against a Warriors defense that hasn’t looked connected.

Whether it’s getting beat at the point of attack, failing to protect the rim, or missing rotations entirely, both Butler and Green made it clear the issues on the defensive end are real — and need to be fixed now. So with two full practice days before Saturday’s matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans, the Warriors will have a small window to reset their defensive urgency and try to stop this pattern as it continues to define their season.

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For more on this and other news around the NBA, here is our latest news round-up for Friday, November 28th:

Warriors News:Steph Curry expected to miss week with quad contusion, sources say | ESPN

The Warriors said on Thursday that an MRI confirmed a quad contusion and muscle strain. The team said Curry would be reevaluated in one week.

Curry, who left in the final minute of a 104-100 home loss to the Rockets on Wednesday night, is believed to have avoided any serious issue, per sources.

“When I heard it was a quad, I was actually relieved,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said postgame. “Better than an ankle or a knee.”

Why do the Warriors only have one Curry right now? Blame the NBA hard cap | The Athletic

The Warriors signed Al Horford using the taxpayer MLE, which hard-capped them at the second apron for the 2025-26 season. After coming to terms with Jonathan Kuminga following a protracted negotiation, the team did not have enough breathing room under the hard cap after Kuminga and their other transactions to sign Seth Curry to a minimum contract for the full season. Since minimum contracts prorate over the season as teams play games, they needed to wait until at least Nov. 11 to legally sign him — but have waited longer to avoid what the Mavericks went through a season ago, as each day gives them more breathing room they may eventually need to use.

Gary Payton II talks defense in this era, Steph Curry + MORE!NBA News:Mavs’ Anthony Davis (calf) to make return against Lakers | ESPN

After practice Wednesday, Davis told reporters that he would play in one end of the Mavs’ weekend back-to-back against the two Los Angeles teams.

“You know what game I want to play,” he said, referring to the matchup with his former team. “But we’ll see.”

Thunder All-Star Jalen Williams set to return Friday vs. SunsIn case you missed it at Golden State of Mind:Warriors assign De’Anthony Melton, Jonathan Kuminga, and Gui Santos to G League

Per ESPN’s Anthony Slater, this isn’t a permanent assignment meant to demote the three aforementioned players. Rather, it is for them to get some scrimmage reps on the court. In Melton’s case, it is part of a ramp-up back toward a full return to the court after being sidelined for a year due to an ACL injury. In Kuminga’s case, it is part of his warm-up process before making a return from knee tendinitis. In Santos’ case, it is to keep him active for conditioning purposes after not having seen much on-court time this season. After their scrimmage stint, they will immediately be recalled.

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A post to end the week:

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