Lineups for Golden State Beginning to Shape up During Preseason Action

The Warriors' 4-0 start to the preseason has produced several positives as the team heads towards the October 23 opening night matchup in Portland against the Trail Blazers. Golden State has showcased its potential as a high-volume three-point shooting team early on, largely thanks to offseason additions on the wing.

Though the win-to-loss ratio in the preseason is far from everything you need to know, a strong training camp and preseason showing isn’t just something to gloss over. The last time the Warriors went undefeated in the preseason was in 2021-22, the Dubs went on to start the regular season hot, going 18-2.

Nailing down rotations and lineups on the floor that have shown cohesiveness in the exhibition games is a top priority for head coach Steve Kerr and his coaching staff. In the small sample size of four games, newly acquired shooting guard Buddy Hield has been as advertised thus far. Hield is shooting 59% from three, including a 22-point performance going 8-9 from the field with six threes in the Warriors' win over Sacramento. Golden State as a team drained 28 from deep that night.

“He looks the part, doesn’t he? He comes off the bench and you can feel his impact immediately. He’s not shy and we need that. We need a scorer off the bench and he’s been fantastic these first four games. I’m really excited about Buddy, and that role makes a lot of sense for him,” Kerr said.

Kerr’s comments after Sunday’s 111-93 victory over the Pistons indicate that Hield will do the bulk of his contributing for the second unit with Steph Curry off the floor to fill the void without their best distance shooter. Look for veteran three-and-D guard De’Anthony Melton to see minutes as a starter to open up the season, set the tone on the defensive end, and provide a scoring threat from beyond the arc. He will likely play alongside Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga and Draymond Green.

Though nothing is set in stone as of yet, Kerr will have the responsibility of piecing together what he believes caters to Curry’s game to fully maximize potential on both sides of the ball. With him being the focal point of everything the Warriors do, it all depends on how far the 36-year-old Curry can go along with the internal growth of young teammates.

"This feels like a new beginning for us, whereas last year felt like an extension of who we already were. It gives us a chance to reinvent ourselves a little bit,” Kerr said.

The decision to have Green as the presumable starting center for the 2024-25 season comes with its own challenges as the 34-year-old is undersized, and small ball being less of a tactic for the Warriors roster at this stage of their NBA lives with much of the league being younger and more athletic as is.

The bench unit of Golden State feels as strong as it has been in some time. With high expectations within the organization for the second-year player Brandin Podziemski coming off all-rookie first-team honors paired with Hield in the backcourt. Former lottery pick Moses Moody enters his fourth NBA season and has had a strong preseason showing along with another veteran addition Kyle Anderson. Trayce Jackson-Davis and Kevon Looney will man the middle and split action at the center position.

The Warriors' backcourt depth is evident, with Golden State also having defensive specialist and little big-man Gary Payton II and Lindy Waters III. During his preseason action, Waters III showed flashes of his capabilities as a shooter, including knocking down a buzzer-beating three to win the opener against the Clippers in Hawaii.

Golden State closes the preseason with back-to-back games against the Los Angeles Lakers, before the regular season tips off next week.




(Photo via Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)

Matthew ColemanWarriorsComment