The Golden State Warriors ran circles around the depleted Indiana Pacers on Monday, winning 120-83 and extending their win streak to eight games. Klay Thompson led Golden State in scoring with 25 points on 10-for-18 shooting, and Stephen Curry had 22 points on 6-for-11 shooting. They both would have had much more if it was necessary.

Takeaways:

The Warriors did what they had to do: It was easy to feel bad for the Pacers, who trotted out a starting lineup of Jeff Teague, Monta Ellis, Glenn Robinson III, Thaddeus Young and Al Jefferson because of injuries to Paul George, Myles Turner and C.J. Miles. You can only play the team that's in front of you, though, and Golden State approached this professionally.

The Warriors built a 15-point lead in the first quarter, created more separation before halftime and put coach Steve Kerr in a position to rest starters in the fourth. There was no messing around, as evidenced by them only turning the ball over nine times in the first three quarters and staying focused defensively. That's just about all you can ask in this kind of game.

Stephen Curry in Indianapolis
Stephen Curry and the Warriors ran circles around the Pacers. USATSI

Another great one from Draymond: Once again, Draymond Green only scored 10 points but had an incredible impact on the game. Green, who also had nine rebounds, seven assists, two steals and two blocks in 29 minutes, was everywhere. From making perfect passes to protecting the rim, Green did a little bit of everything and was perhaps Golden State's most important player.

Also worth noting: Kevin Durant sort of did a Green impression here. He attempted only nine field goals, his fewest as a Warrior and fewest since last December. Still, he played an excellent game, finishing with 14 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, two steals, two blocks and a number of deflections.

The assist streak lives on: With about nine minutes left in the fourth quarter, David West made a pass to a cutting Ian Clark, who made a floater to put Golden State up 111-78. It was not a particularly notable play, but it was Golden State's 30th assist of the game. The Warriors have reached that mark in each of their last eight games, and it is a nice a representation of the fact that they are clicking offensively, sharing the ball and playing with the sort of flow that they've had for the past couple of seasons.

Last year, the 73-win Warriors had a 30-assist streak that ran for eight games, too. Aside from that, though, the NBA hasn't seen this since the Charlotte Hornets' 13-game streak in 1989.

Wow, Steph: I'm not even sure what to say about this double-clutch runner from 70 feet, other than that I wish it counted:


Good shooter, that guy.

Uh oh, Indiana: One day after his best game as a Pacer, Jeff Teague sprained his right ankle in the third quarter and did not return. The guard has struggled for much of this season, but was dynamic in Indiana's 115-111 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday, finishing with 30 points on 9-for-16 shooting, plus nine assists, five rebounds and six steals. If the Pacers are ever going to reach their potential, it will be with Teague running the show efficiently.

Maybe we shouldn't be fretting so much about Golden State's defense: Before the game, analytics legend Dean Oliver pointed out that the Warriors' defensive rating has been skewed because of their garbage-time play:

It is true that Golden State has seen some slippage on defense -- the same was true last year, when its defensive rating fell to fourth in defensive rating after ranking first the season prior. Sometimes the Warriors relax a bit defensively, surrender easy baskets in transition and let inferior teams stick around for too long. They still, however, have the personnel to be a fantastic and versatile defensive team, even without centers Andrew Bogut and Festus Ezeli.

This wasn't a fair fight because of Indiana's injuries, but Golden State still showed something with its defensive effort. The Warriors never let the Pacers build any kind of confidence.