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OAKLAND — The milestone for Zaza Pachulia did not receive as much attention as Stephen Curry reaching 14,000 points. Or Kevin Durant notching his 10th career triple double. Or Klay Thompson becoming the NBA’s leader in three-point field-goal percentage (45.7).

That has always become the story for Pachulia in his second season with the Warriors, as his screen-setting, defensive toughness and positive locker room presence become relative afterthoughts as he starts with four All-Star teammates. Nonetheless, the Warriors’ 126-113 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday at Oracle Arena coincided with Pachiulia appearing in his 1,000th career game in the middle of his 15th NBA season.

“It’s always great when you accomplish something,” Pachulia said. “I know I’m not the first one or the last one. But still to play 1,000 NBA games is pretty remarkable and pretty cool.”

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Pachulia became the third Warriors veteran this season to log 1,000 NBA games, including Andre Iguodala and David West. Each of those veterans have completely different games and backstories.

After playing most of his career as the focal point with the Philadelphia 76ers, Iguodala arrived in Golden State via trade from Denver in 2013 before becoming a reserve when Warriors coach Steve Kerr arrived for the 2014-15 season. West willingly took a paycut to join the Warriors in the 2016-17 season to pursue an NBA title, while offering his dependable presence as a mid-range shooter, rebounder and mentor. After growing up in the Republic of Georgia, Pachulia played in Turkey before entering the NBA with stops in Orlando (2003-04), Milwaukee (2004-05, 2013-15), Atlanta (2005-13), Dallas (2015-16) and Golden State (2016-present).

Yet, Warriors coach Steve Kerr found plenty of common threads that enabled Pachulia, Ihuodala and West to appear in 1,000 games. Like our Warriors Facebook page for more Warriors news, commentary and conversation.

“It’s not anything we do. It’s everything they have done over the course of their respective careers. The conditioning, the preparation and the awareness of what it means to be a professional,” Kerr said. “I love the dynamic that we have with David, Zaza, Andre and Shaun [Livingston] with that veteran mentoring and leadership. When a guy comes to work every single day and the other players know he played 1,000 games and you see the day-to-day commitment to conditioning and preparation, it sets a great tone for the team.”

It sounds simple to do in theory. It remains difficult to complete in reality. The routine becomes harder to duplicate without feeling monotonous. It also becomes harder to repeat when accounting for injuries and fatigue. Pachulia said he has one important quality, though, that enables him to stay consistent.

“Everything starts with the love. That’s for sure,” Pachulia said. “If you don’t love your job, you can’t maintain the discipline in playing that many years. It starts with the love, discipline and taking care of your body. Understanding the older you get, you have to pay attention to every single detail.”

Therefore, Pachulia has spent his 15th NBA season filling his non game-days with practice time, receiving massages, icing his body and performing yoga before resting. Pachulia also constantly monitors what he eats.

“It’s been my life. It motivates me and gives me more energy to play as much as I can,” Pachulia said. “All I can do is wake up in the morning and go to the practice facility with a smile on my face and experience something every single game. It’s amazing, especially being around these guys and coaching staff. Being part of this Warriors organization makes it sweeter.”

Fittingly, Pachulia has done this without much fanfare. It seems kind of hard to do that anyway with Curry, Durant, Thompson and Green receiving most of the attention. But the Warriors notice.

“Maybe that’s why they are all really good mentors. They’re all very quiet,” Kerr said. “They only speak when they have something important to say. They do it in a really good manner.”