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Last season, the Golden State Warriors were 18-2 in their first 20 games and had a 7-1 mark on the road. They’re starting 10-10 as they open their title-retention bid this season, lowlighted by a dismal 1-9 slate away from Chase Center.
Richard Jefferson, on “The Ryen Russillo Podcast,” had an interesting analysis of why the Warriors have been off to a surprisingly subpar start:
“Draymond [Green] had four years with Izzo, Steph [Curry] had three years, Klay [Thompson] had three years, Andre Iguodala had two years with Lute Olson. Their core group of guys were older when they came into the league, they had higher basketball IQ when they came into the league
“You’re expecting Kuminga and Wiseman, guys that are one-and-done to be able to play in this read and react system. … The Warriors need some more adults.”
The Golden State Warriors’ championship squad lost Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr., Juan Toscano-Anderson and Nemanja Bjelica this offseason. They are veterans who have honed their skills and most importantly, their basketball IQ, to operate seamlessly around Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
Losing them didn’t seem like it was a huge deal as the Warriors had James Wiseman, Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga. Their expected development, however, has come way short, which is a big part of the reason why the Warriors are struggling.
Head coach Steve Kerr badly wanted to develop his youngsters without suffering too many defeats. That hasn’t been the case as the Golden State Warriors have been blown out when their bench mob comes in. They have been asking Steph Curry to put up insane numbers to rescue them time and again as their youth struggles.
After losing to the Sacramento Kings on November 13, Kerr told the media that he will have to make some changes to his combinations. He also said that he could tighten up the rotation a little bit. A few days later, James Wiseman was sent to the G-League.
Kuminga and Moody have remained, but they both have a short leash when they’re on the court.
Richard Jefferson added that he didn’t question the talents and skills of the Warriors’ young backups, but he wasn’t sure about their development yet. More importantly, their development may not be on the same timeline as the Golden State Warriors’ core of Curry, Thompson and Green.
The Golden State Warriors’ once-vaunted defense is suffering from a lack of communication and trust
The same wavelength isn’t just required on the offensive end. Draymond Green, the Golden State Warriors’ defensive lynchpin, has bemoaned his team’s lack of communication and trust in defense.
It takes game repetition and basketball IQ to sustain the Warriors’ defensive standards. Moody, Kuminga and particularly Wiseman didn’t do too well on that end when Kerr trusted them to play.
It’s not singularly the young guys’ fault on that end, but they’ve had trouble catching up with Kerr’s defensive philosophy. Jordan Poole and Klay Thompson are just as guilty, but the two can do so much on the offensive end that Kerr can give them a pass.
After Kerr made significant changes to his lineup, the Golden State Warriors are starting to hum. Since their loss to the Kings, when their record dropped to 5-8, they’re now 5-2 in their last seven games.
Steph Curry is having an all-time great year and the Warriors may not want to waste that by waiting for their youngsters to develop. There are already trade rumors that could bring the Bay Area team more veteran help.
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