Weekly recap and a look ahead: Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors have rough start to their 'Underdog SZN'
"The reality is we [explicit] suck right now…. We just not that good right now. I don't know what better way to frame it. I can try in Spanish, but I ain't really that good at Spanish."
Warriors forward Draymond Green did not hold back in his statement after the Warriors' 28-point loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder Sunday. The loss marked the Dubs' second straight loss of the season. This is the first time the Warriors have opened the season with back to back losses since 2009-- a season that the Dubs went 26-56.
While the Warriors are a completely different franchise than they were in 2009, the Dubs do have a lot to worry about.
From the team's shooting percentage to defensive execution, Steve Kerr will have his hands full in the coming weeks. While it's only been two games, a tiny sample size, it's been a very telling 96 minutes of basketball.
For starters, the crisp offensive execution that has tormented teams for half a decade has turned into ball watching and purposeless cutting-- something that has never been seen in the Steve Kerr-era.
In the preseason, this was an issue. The offense was stalled; it seemed as though it was four guys on the floor waiting for Stephen Curry to do something. And that can be exciting basketball, but it's not winning basketball.
It's clear that an adjustment was made, only the adjustment seems to be taking Curry out of the too many plays.
In the opening night matchup versus the Los Angeles Clippers, the Warriors let the game get out of control early in the third quarter as they went through a painful scoring drought. Curry found himself drawing double and sometimes triple teams and was forced to pass it off to the open man. Now in past years, that open man has been Klay Thompson, Quinn Cook, Ian Clarke, and even Brandon Rush-- all guys who have proven they can consistently knock down an open jump shot. This year that man is Glen Robinson III, Jacob Evans, and Jordan Poole-- all players who have high ceilings but are still developing within their position. Each guard, outside of Curry and D'Angelo Russell, is still in the process of developing their identity as role players.
It's clear that Robison III has the potential to be a defensive stopper, but needs to develop his outside stroke further to become a Three-and-D role player-- same for Jacob Evans. Jordan Poole, on the other hand, has shown the capability to manufacture his own shot-- having the potential to be a very valuable sixth man-- but will need time to adjust to NBA play all together as well as better his shot selection.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, time is not of the essence. In past years, the Western Conference has been so close in the standing, that every game matters. If you don't believe me, think back to the 2014-15 playoffs that didn't include the Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook Thunder. Anthony Davis hit a circus shot to beat the Thunder in February of that year--a game that didn't seem like it could affect much-- and it wound up being the deciding game for the eighth seed, sending Davis and his Pelicans to the playoffs and leaving Westbrook and Durant at home.
Steve Kerr will have to figure out ways to manufacture shots for Curry, while the young guns develop into the role players the Warriors' need-- or at least until Klay Thompson returns.
What is even more glaring for the Dubs, is their lack of defensive execution. Bad shooting nights happen. Sometimes it takes a minute to get in the habit of running in the right lane, and knowing when to cut. But what cannot be an inconsistency is defensive execution. In the Warriors' first two games, the defensive end was almost non-existent.
Late closeouts, letting the ball get to the middle, abysmal transition defense… there were a lot of grey areas on the defensive end for the Dubs. Granted, the Warriors are missing the majority of their size to hold down the middle.
Kevon Looney's injury midway through the Clipper game is one reason why that game got out of hand, and also why the OKC game was a route from almost start to finish. The Dubs are missing their possible starting center, Willie Cauley-Stein, and versatile forward Alen Smailagić. When these three return, the defense will look different. Their size, in general, will make opposing guards think twice about driving in, let alone clearing out for their centers the way the Clippers did for Ivica Zubac. But, their return will only be a bandaid for the defensive issues the Warriors are having.
Yes, size will help, but the main issue is the Dubs’ rotation in the pick and roll and keeping opposing guards in front of them. Looney and Cauley-Stein can't fix that. More so, the Dubs will either have to cut down their turnovers or improve their transition defense-- letting go of offensive rebounding.
Throughout their first two matchups, the Dubs allowed 76 points in transition, per ESPN, in games that they lost by an average of 23 points. With time not being on the Dubs' side, they will have to figure out a way to put together stops.
Looking ahead, the road does not get any easier. Golden State has a quick turn around, playing their first back to back game versus the Pelicans Monday night at 5 pm PT.
The Pels have been very competitive in their first few games, with their young players finding a groove in their last game versus the Rockets. The Warriors will have to find a way to string together consecutive good offensive positions-- particularly for Curry-- while being able to defend the Pelicans lengthy guards.
Following Monday night's action, the Warriors play Wednesday against the Phoenix Suns, Friday against the Charlotte Hornets, and then again Saturday against the San Antonio Spurs.
This upcoming week will be critical for the Dubs, as far as gaining momentum after their rough start to the season. With everything said and done, it has been a very small sample for the Warriors, and they still have 80 more games to play in the season.