LOS ANGELES >> Hours before the Warriors’ 123-116 barnburner of a victory over the Lakers in Los Angeles, Brandin Podziemski and Steph Curry each launched a half-court shot during shoot-around on a practice court at UCLA.

It’s a competition for the two — the greatest shooter who ever lived and a second-year guard from Santa Clara — that has produced 24 wins for Curry and two dozen victories for Podziemski.

“We shoot one shot after practice during shoot around, and then we both shoot one pre-game,” Podziemski explained after scoring 28 points and making eight 3-pointers. “So if we both miss nothing counts, and if we both make, nothing counts.”

That marksmanship made Podziemski’s unwillingness to shoot a similar halfcourt bomb in San Antonio both bewildering and frustrating. Teammates Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green demanded that never would happen again.

So it surprised none of his Warriors teammates when Podziemski took one dribble and two long steps to get to half-court before he banking in a long buzzer-beating three, which was followed by him belting “Give me my money,” a reference to what Green described as a Warriors tradition of shooting half-court shots with cash on the line in practice.

After being challenged by his veteran teammates, Podziemski’s confidence was on full display.

“He took that to heart and took that shot, and obviously made a lot of big ones,” coach Steve Kerr said.

Podziemski has scored in double figures in eight of nine games since returning from a back injury. That included a 27 points against San Antonio and 15 against Toronto.

Podziemski’s hot shooting — he made 3-pointers on the Warriors’ first two possessions and never cooled off — was complemented by his willingness to defend.

In a game that could have seen the Warriors slip as far as seventh in the Western Conference standings with a loss, Podziemski gave maximum effort when switched onto Lakers superstars LeBron James and Luka Doncic.

Green hopes it is a sign of things to come in the playoffs.

“Unfortunately, he hasn’t had the opportunity to play much meaningful basketball at this level,” Green said. “And so for us, we plan on doing that. And with him, we need these games to prepare him for what’s to come.”

Golden State (45-31) remains the fifth seed in the conference, one game behind the No. 4 seed Lakers and 1 1/2 games behind No. 3 seed Denver. The Warriors will play at home against the Nuggets on Friday and No. 2 seed Houston on Sunday.

“From the Memphis game, and from that point to the next four games, every game is a playoff game to us,” Podziemski said. “That’s how I prepare for it, and that’s how everybody else is preparing for it.”