In a night that will echo through the rafters of Chase Center for years to come, Golden State Warriors guard Moses Moody unleashed a barrage unlike anything seen in the franchise’s storied three-point era. With seven triples raining down in the opening frame against the beleaguered New Orleans Pelicans, Moody didn’t just etch his name into the team’s record books—he tied the inimitable Stephen Curry for the second-most threes in a single quarter in Warriors history.
The eruption propelled the Warriors to a season-high 44 points in the first quarter, a 16-point cushion that ballooned into a 124-106 rout, marking Golden State’s third consecutive victory and improving their record to 9-6. For Moody, a 2021 first-round pick out of Arkansas, it was a career-defining explosion: 32 points on 10-of-16 shooting, including 8-of-12 from beyond the arc—seven of those in the first 12 minutes alone, where he poured in 21 points. The performance fell just two shy of Klay Thompson’s NBA-record nine threes in a quarter, set in a 2015 demolition of the Sacramento Kings, but it was enough to send the Warriors’ bench into delirium and the Smoothie King Center crowd into stunned silence.
A First-Quarter Firestorm
It started innocently enough. With 10:45 left in the opening period, Moody drained a three from the left wing, igniting a spark. What followed was a symphony of swishes: another from the left wing, one from the right, and then two more from the corner—each one met with escalating roars from his teammates on the sideline. By the time the buzzer sounded, Moody had gone 7-for-8 from deep, single-handedly accounting for nearly half of Golden State’s explosive 44-28 quarter lead. “It felt like everything was going in,” Moody said postgame, a grin splitting his face as he reflected on the surreal stretch. “I was just letting it fly—trusting the work we’ve put in.”
The Warriors, already humming on a two-game win streak after Curry’s back-to-back 40-plus point masterpieces against the Spurs, didn’t need their superstar to carry the load this time. Curry, perhaps still nursing the afterglow of those heroics, struggled mightily, finishing with just nine points on 2-of-11 shooting. But in a testament to the depth Steve Kerr has cultivated, the supporting cast stepped up. Newly acquired Jimmy Butler notched a double-double with 18 points and 10 assists, looking every bit the veteran floor general in his Warriors tenure. Brandin Podziemski erupted for 19 points off the bench, while Buddy Hield—finally finding his stroke after a cold streak—chipped in 11, including his first threes since last week.
Golden State as a team lit up the night from distance, connecting on 24-of-56 threes (42.9 percent), while holding the Pelicans to a frigid 8-of-29 (27.6 percent). The Dubs never trailed after a blistering 12-0 run midway through the first, extending their lead to as many as 25 in the second half despite a brief Pelicans zone defense that cooled the offense temporarily.
Pelicans’ Pain: Chaos in the Bayou
For the Pelicans, now a dismal 2-11 after firing head coach Willie Green earlier in the week, the night was a microcosm of their season’s turmoil. Interim coach James Borrego’s debut couldn’t stem the tide, as New Orleans mustered just 28 first-quarter points and watched helplessly as Moody torched their perimeter defense. Trey Murphy III led the way with 20 points, and rookie sensation Jeremiah Fears impressed with 16 in his sophomore showcase, but it wasn’t enough against a Warriors squad firing on all cylinders.
“Moses having a biblical first quarter really set us back,” one Pelicans fan lamented on Reddit postgame. The loss drops New Orleans to host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, a matchup that feels like climbing Everest after this avalanche.
Moody’s Meteoric Rise: From Fringe to Flame-Thrower
This wasn’t a fluke—it’s the culmination of Moody’s quiet ascension in his fifth NBA season. Entering the game, the 23-year-old was averaging a robust 11.6 points per contest while scorching the nets at a career-best 41.9 percent from three—leaps from his first four years, where he averaged 7.0 points across 255 games on 36.7 percent long-range shooting. Drafted 14th overall in 2021, Moody has often been the forgotten man in Golden State’s constellation of stars, but increased minutes and Kerr’s trust have unlocked something special.
Teammates were effusive in their praise. Curry, ever the mentor, pulled Moody aside during a timeout: “Keep shooting—it’s your night.” Draymond Green, who grabbed 10 boards in a gritty all-around effort, added, “Mo’s been putting in the work. Tonight, it all clicked. That’s the beauty of this team.” Kerr, beaming postgame, called it “one of the best quarters I’ve ever coached,” tying Moody’s feat to the franchise’s three-point legacy while noting how it alleviates pressure on Curry during off nights.
In tying Curry’s mark—previously thought untouchable in the “Splash Brothers” lore—Moody has announced himself as a cornerstone, not a role player. As the Warriors embark on the rest of their six-game road swing, this eruption serves notice: Golden State’s dynasty may evolve, but its firepower remains eternal.
With the win, the Warriors solidify their spot in the Western Conference playoff picture, a far cry from last season’s struggles. For Moody, it’s validation after years in the shadows. History wasn’t rewritten outright—Thompson’s nine remains the gold standard—but a new chapter has been scrawled, one three at a time. And in Dub Nation, that’s more than enough to celebrate.