Warriors edge Wizards as Wiggins comes up clutch

Andrew Wiggins (22) drives to the basket defended by Deni Avdija (9) in the second half as the Golden State Warriors played the Washington Wizards at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, February 13, 2023.Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

2023.02.13 – Andrew Wiggins had 29 points and seven rebounds, Klay Thompson scored 27 points, and the Golden State Warriors edge the Washington Wizards 135-126 on Monday night in their final home game before the All-Star break.

After illness and injury twice interrupted his season and threw off Wiggins’ rhythm, he sure needed a dominant game like this.

“Definitely his best game since he’s been back, he had a lot of good games early in the season but I loved his aggressiveness, he was attacking the rim all night and got it going from the mid-range and just got us a lot of key buckets when we were starting to fade a little bit,” coach Steve Kerr said of Wiggins.

Monday’s game felt like a return to form in a lot of ways for Wiggins, who finished with a team-high 29 points (12-of-23 shooting) with seven rebounds and four assists in 39 minutes. It was his highest scoring game since returning from a right adductor strain and non-COVID illness that forced him to miss 15 games from Dec. 5 to Jan. 4.

Let’s not forget JaMychal Green, because he has also been through the wringer dealing first with COVID-19 then an infection in his lower right leg. Now, he’s dealing with a tender wrist.

Green went 4 of 4 from deep and made all five of his field goals for 14 points to go with five assists and backup point guard Ty Jerome had nine points, seven assists and one turnover.

Jerome praised Green’s efforts through it all, staying upbeat even the days he doesn’t get in the game.

“I don’t care how many years you’ve been in the league, I don’t care how old you are, it’s not easy,” Jerome said. “So to be perfect from the field tonight, to be good on defense, he always brings a toughness factor for us every night. That’s who he is as a shooter, so it’s good to see them fall like that. Wiggs looked like an All-Star tonight. That’s who he is.”

2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (NBA Video highlights)

Andrew Wiggins (22) defends against Kristaps Porzingis (6) in the second half as the Golden State Warriors played the Washington Wizards at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, February 13, 2023.Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (NBA Video highlights)

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2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (NBA Video highlights)

Fellow reserve Donte DiVincenzo added 17 points off the bench, while Kevon Looney contributed 13 points and 13 rebounds as the Warriors snapped a two-game skid. The defending champions played without Stephen Curry for a fourth straight game because of a left leg injury that will keep him out until sometime after the All-Star break.

Kristaps Porzingis scored 34 points on 12-of-16 shooting for a Wizards team that had won 8 of 11 and five of its previous six road games. Bradley Beal added 33 points and reach 15,000 career points. He received a $25,000 bill from the NBA earlier in the day for making contact with a game official in the third quarter Saturday against Indiana.

The Warriors swept the season series after winning 127-118 in Washington last month.

The Wizards used a 14-3 run late in the first to build a 39-29 lead after the opening period, but Golden State’s 42-point second quarter put the Warriors ahead 71-66 at the break.

PAYTON’S HEALTH

Newly acquired Golden State guard Gary Payton II will be out for at least a month as he fully recovers from off-season surgery for a core muscle injury, and Warriors general manager Bob Myers is awaiting a decision from the NBA on whether Portland withheld anything on Payton’s health before trading him last week.

Myers is hopeful the defensive guard returns before the playoffs. Payton is listed on the injury report with right adductor soreness, stemming from the abdominal area.

2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (NBC Sports Post Game)

Ty Jerome (10) and Kevon Looney (5) defend against Anthony Gill (16) in the first half as the Golden State Warriors played the Washington Wizards at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, February 13, 2023.Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (NBC Sports Post Game)

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2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (NBC Sports Post Game)

“What do I want? Whatever the NBA says is fair, just whatever that is,” Myers said Monday of receiving any potential compensation from the Trail Blazers. “I just want a fair result. I don’t know, whatever it takes, it takes, I don’t know how long.”

Payton received a rousing ovation when welcomed back on the big screen in the first half.

TIP-INS

Wizards: G Kyle Kuzma, who came in questionable, missed a second straight game because of a sprained left ankle that kept him out of a 127-113 rout of the Pacers. Coach Wes Unseld Jr. is hopeful Kuzma could return Tuesday night at Portland. … The Wizards have lost seven of nine on the Warriors’ home floor.

Warriors: Draymond Green picked up his 15th technical, moving him one from a suspension… “He’s never been suspended,” Kerr said. “He’s always stopped one shy, so I have faith.” While Kerr was whistled for his sixth technical of the season 3:32 before halftime. … The Warriors are playing their 12th back-to-back sequence. … Golden State had 40 assists and has dished out 30 or more in a league-best 32 games.

2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (Kruger Show Post Game)

Ty Jerome (10) celebrates a last second made basket by Kevon Looney (5) in the first half as the Golden State Warriors played the Washington Wizards at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, February 13, 2023.Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (Kruger Show Post Game)

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2023.02.13 – Warriors vs. Wizards (Kruger Show Post Game)

UP NEXT

Wizards: Visit the Trail Blazers on Tuesday night to finish a tough road trip of back-to-back games.

Warriors: The Dubs will play the Clippers in Los Angeles on Tuesday night, the second game in a back-to-back set. Thompson hasn’t played in such a game all season, but said he anticipates doing so for the first time since April 2019.

“Huge milestone, even more fun to do it in front of family,” said Thompson, an alum of Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Orange County.