This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

The Golden State Warriors were without the services of Harrison Barnes on Monday night, one of their most athletic and dynamic forwards. He was out with a sprained ankle.

Stephen Curry — one of the top players in the NBA — missed 11 of the 20 shots he took against a game Utah Jazz defense. After the game, Draymond Green said he "stunk" at making plays, lamenting his five turnovers. Starting forward Brandon Rush played 12 minutes and scored three points.

And still, the Warriors were able to squeak out a 106-103 win over the Jazz at Vivint Smart Home Arena.

This is the depth of Golden State in its full glory, a chief reason the Warriors are defending their NBA title with a league-record 19-0 start. They are a lot more than Curry and Green, a lot more than Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala.

They don't have to be perfect to win. Their talent and depth is so pronounced that defeating them to this point has proved to be just out of reach. It's a testament to how the Jazz played that the game was this close. If anything, Utah's ability on both ends made the Warriors brush off their skills in clutch situations and gave Golden State interim head coach Luke Walton an excuse to keep Curry on the floor in the fourth quarter.

"We knew this was going to be one of the tougher challenges for us," Walton said. "That team is very well-coached, and they execute. They've got those big men that are a lot to deal with. It was a solid NBA game, and it was a lot of fun to be a part of."

The best NBA teams over 82 games have had guys who step up with contributions when called. The Warriors have that, and then some. The Jazz cut Ian Clark last March, putting him on in. Clark may have had the last laugh, hitting four crucial 3-pointers at the end of the first half, each of them bigger than the last.

His 12 points were as important as any in the game, especially since Curry struggled to seven points in that first half. His shooting allowed the Warriors to keep Utah at bay with a 53-48 halftime lead. Clark played 6 minutes total, all in the first half. But those minutes were game-changing in a lot of ways.

"Ian was huge for us," Green said. "I don't know if that was smart by them [the Jazz] not wanting him, as we say, but he was huge. Whenever his number is called this year, he's been ready — and you have to give him a lot of credit for that. He is continuing to earn himself more and more minutes, especially shooting the ball like that."

tjones@sltrib.com

twitter: @tjonessltrib —

Streak savvy

R Golden State moves to 19-0 on the season, an NBA record.

• The Warriors get eight points and eight rebounds off the bench from Festus Ezeli.

• Golden State nets 14 of 29 from 3-point range.