AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- In their final tuneup before the Christmas Day showdown in Cleveland, the Golden State Warriors couldn't hang onto the ball.

Normally, sloppy play comes back to haunt teams. For the Warriors, all that did was make their game against the slumping Detroit Pistons closer than expected.

Kevin Durant fired in 32 points and the Warriors overcame a season-high 23 turnovers to down the Pistons 119-113 on Friday night at The Palace.

"We weren't sharp, obviously," said Golden State coach Steve Kerr, whose team won its seventh straight. "To be able to win with 23 turnovers leading to 33 points is pretty remarkable, on the road especially. But I give Detroit credit. They're an excellent defensive team, a top five defensive club in this league. They forced a lot of those turnovers and we were lucky to be able to overcome them."

Golden State's previous high for turnovers was 20 against the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 4. The Warriors consistently generous on Friday, committing six turnovers in the first quarter, six in the second, four in the third and seven in the fourth.

Not quite the performance they had in mind heading into their first matchup with the Cavaliers since blowing a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals.

"I don't think we're playing that great," forward Draymond Green said. "We know how to win but there's a lot of things we've got to get better at. We've got to continue to get better at the defensive end. I think a big part of that is executing on the offensive end and not turning the ball over. I think we had 23 turnovers tonight. It's hard to play defense like that."

The league's highest-scoring team still shot 55.8 percent from the field and 40.7 on 3-point attempts. Now, the Warriors can turn their attention to the rival that broke their hearts in June.

"You always look forward to certain games against the best teams," Kerr said. "It doesn't mean anything for later, for whatever happens down the road, but it's always a fun time to play on Christmas and fun to play against a great team."

Stephen Curry had 23 points and eight assists for the Warriors (27-4). Klay Thompson added 17 points, including two clutch baskets in the final minute, and JaVale McGee chipped in 15.

Green, who flew back to the Bay Area on Thursday for the birth of his son, returned to action after a one-game absence. Green contributed five points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy made a lineup change, inserting Joe Leuer at power forward in place of Tobias Harris. That wound up benefiting Harris, who had 26 points and seven rebounds.

"One thing I've learned throughout my career is that when certain decisions are made, as a player you shut up, put your big boy pants on and be ready to play," Harris said. "That's the bottom line. Do what you can to help your team."

Kentavious Caldwel-Pope contributed 25 points and Reggie Jackson added 17 points and six assists for Detroit (14-18), which lost its fifth straight.

"We forced 23 turnovers, we were aggressive and we played hard," Van Gundy said. "I'm not faulting our effort at all. I thought our guys gave great effort but we just couldn't guard."

Green's only basket of the night, a dunk off a Thompson feed, put the Warriors on top 112-110 with 1:31 left. Thompson and Caldwell-Pope traded baskets before Thompson hit a clinching 3-pointer with 22.1 seconds left.

"Klay is confident in those situations," Kerr said. "Even on a night where he doesn't really have it rolling, we're still going to go to him if he's open."

NOTES: Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy isn't sure how long he'll go with the lineup change of PF Jon Leuer starting in place of Tobias Harris. "I don't know if this is going to be a long-term thing," he said. "We're just trying to find a lineup and a rotation that works." ... Golden State coach Steve Kerr wasn't surprised that PF Draymond Green missed just one game after flying home for the birth of his son. "Even if (it) hadn't been Detroit (Green's hometown team), he would have wanted to get back," Kerr said. "He hates missing games." ... Golden State won its last 13 regular-season road games against Eastern Conference teams after its loss to Detroit in January. ... Entering the game, the Pistons were shooting 40.3 percent on 3-point attempts in victories, compared to 28.6 percent in losses. ... The Warriors host the Pistons on Jan. 12.