An insight into the Warriors’ performances over their last 9 games: Stephen Curry and his growing MVP chants, and more.
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The Golden State Warriors, in the course of the last 9 games since we’ve had this segment, have gone 8-1. In case you haven’t read the breakdown of the first 7 games of the season, you can go ahead and read it here.
Since the last coverage, the Dubs have had 5 home games, and 4 games on the road. They went undefeated at home and lost only one game at the start of their road trip. The Warriors hold a league-best 14-2 record to start the season.
Along with the team success, we’ll also break down a few individuals, spell out what went right, and what could have been improved on. Let’s get into it.
The Good:
Stephen Curry gets out of his funk, climbs to the #1 spot on the MVP ladder
Stephen Curry, as we’ve all grown accustomed to seeing, starts his season a little slow. Even though he was averaging over 26 ppg, it was still a slow start for the blizzard known as Stephen Curry. Over the course of the last 7 games, Curry has boosted his average to 29.5 points per game, leading the league yet again. This, along with the Warriors’ success so far has jumped the Chef to the top spot in the MVP race.
Steph has been tremendous on the offensive end. He has had 9 or more 3-pointers in 4 out of his last 6 games. While this number may not surprise us, it is quite impressive if we put it in perspective.
Stephen Curry just became the first player to record 400+ 3s in a calendar year, when he made 9 3s against the Cavaliers. He now has 406 3s in 2021. Curry passed Ray Allen for the most 3-point FGs in NBA History(playoffs+regular season combined) last week. He trails Allen by just 57 for the regular season honors as well.
Greatest Shooter Of All Time. That’s it.
Draymond Green leads the Warriors to the top-rated defense in the NBA
The Golden State Warriors are trying to be a very efficient team this season. With all the roster changes and the new additions, it was expected to take some time, but the players have gotten along really well. Draymond Green, being the glue guy he is, has got the team calling and gelling well on defense. He has been leading from the front, and the Warriors have a defensive rating of 99.4.
A big part of this number has also been the defensive improvements shown by Stephen Curry. Defensively, he has conclusively proved that he’s one of the league’s best this season. If the Dubs can keep up this defensive intensity up, they can stifle any opposition offense. The addition of Klay Thompson back to the starting lineup should only bolster this number further.
Warriors’ bench stepping up big in non – Stephen Curry minutes
One cause of concern last season was the non-Stephen Curry minutes. The Warriors, despite being tremendous in the minutes Stephen Curry was on the floor, became the polar opposite when he went to the bench. However, this season, the case is totally different.
The Warriors’ bench is the best in the league currently, providing the 2nd highest minutes in the league. They contribute an average of 36.9 points, 20.4 rebounds, 9.7 assists, 4.7 steals, and 1.9 blocks per game. The bench, as a whole, has been shooting 34.1% from the deep, which is pretty decent.
Coming off the bench, the Dubs have veterans like Andre Iguodala, Otto Porter Jr, and Nemanja Bjelica. They also have young guys like Damion Lee, Juan Tuscano-Anderson, Gary Payton II, and then the rookies: Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody. While Kuminga has found a more consistent role in the rotation as an impressive defender, Moody should soon come into his own and carve his way as well.
As the season progresses, the team would need contribution from the bench, and looking at the current trend, the Dubs can rely on their bench to provide so. If the bench keeps contributing and managing non-Curry minutes well, the team can surely continue their success.
Klay Thompson inches closer to return, fans cannot wait to see Stephen Curry and him back together
Klay Thompson and James Wiseman did not join the team on this four-game East road trip. Steve Kerr talked about the same and revealed that the two would work with the team trainers who stayed behind and work on their rehab.
Klay has started taking part in 5-on-5 contact practices. That’s a good step in the correct direction. Although Steve Kerr has warned us not to expect him to jump back onto the court immediately, the expected date of 23rd December is starting to look like a reality.
If Klay returns by the end of December/early January and is healthy, it would just solidify the Warriors’ depth, and make them even scarier.
James Wiseman, on the other hand, hasn’t started with the 5-on-5 practices yet, but is expected to start on these very soon. With these two key pieces back in the Warriors’ rotation, the road to championship glory doesn’t seem that far-fetched a possibility.
Things to Work on:
The Turnovers
I guess this is a pointer that would never seem to go away with the Warriors. They’re currently 26th in the league, averaging 16.1 turnovers a game. The Warriors, despite all their impressive work, cannot seem to manage their turnovers. Even in their win over Brooklyn, they gave away the ball 22 times. Under normal circumstances, that would have resulted in a loss, but the defense put the clamps on the Nets’ players, especially Kevin Durant, and hence we survived.
This is a cause for concern that Steve Kerr and co. would surely like to curb as soon as possible.
Over-reliance on distance shooting
Being basketball players, there are nights when the shots don’t seem to fall, and that’s alright. However, the Warriors, even on those nights, sometimes tend to keep shooting, which causes a lot of empty possessions. In such cases, the team needs to focus on putting their head down and driving to the hoop. They could also focus on their system and move the ball around to find the most optimal shot, instead of pulling up with a lot of time to spare on the shot clock.
This often leads the opponents to get stops and build up a run, which causes the Dubs to fall behind/give up the lead they had established. The Warriors need to work on this as a team, and need to remind each other of the same during the games as well.
What to expect over the next 15 days?
The Warriors play 5 of their next 7 games at home. It wouldn’t be an easy time, as the only team under .500 which they face in this period are the Spurs. They start their 3-game homestand tonight against the Raptors. They then face the Sixers and the Blazers.
Considering the current form of all the teams, and how things are going, the Warriors should be able to go 6-1 or 5-2 through the next 7 games. While I’m hoping for a 7-0 run, it may be a little too optimistic, considering the red hot form the Suns are in, and how the Warriors are facing them twice.
