However, what does Chris Paul’s “best version” with the Warriors mean?
The Golden State Warriors hardly made any noise during the trade deadline.
Joe Lacob’s financial burden was reduced and a roster slot was made available by sending Cory Joseph and $5.8 million to the Indiana Pacers in return for a second-round pick. However, this move will not likely aid the Dubs in their attempt to contend again in the second half of 2023–2024. Luckily, Golden State put an end to any disappointment caused by the deadline stagnation a few hours later with another performance that seemed to indicate the team has truly turned the corner.
On Thursday night, the Warriors defeated the Indiana Pacers 131-109, their second straight decisive victory away from home against a probable Eastern Conference playoff squad. Joel Embiid was sidelined for Wednesday’s game, while the Pacers were without Doug McDermott due to Buddy Hield’s trade earlier in the day, which cost them a point of attack and complicated Rick Carlisle’s usual rotation. But try not to get too caught up in those specifics.
Golden State lost to the Toronto Raptors and New Orleans Pelicans at home in embarrassing fashion not quite a month ago. Three weeks ago, the Warriors lost to the pitifully weak Memphis Grizzlies. A few days later, one of the saddest moments in recent NBA history occurred when esteemed assistant coach Dejan Milojevic passed away after a heart attack. From there, no one would have been shocked if the Dubs’ already precarious collective state further broke and the season fell apart entirely.
As the All-Star break swiftly draws near, this club is, instead, playing by far its greatest basketball of 2023–2024.
After a critical five-game road trip, Golden State concluded with a 4-1 record. Their lone defeat came in overtime against the Atlanta Hawks, where Stephen Curry scored 60 points, Andrew Wiggins was sidelined for the second half due to injury, and Klay Thompson hit just 2 of 13 from beyond the arc. How many points did the Warriors typically lose on that trip? A garish +13.8, a warning sign that their long-standing previous difficulties are well behind them.
Following the victory on Thursday, Steve Kerr admitted what has been evident pretty much since Golden State’s season began a few weeks ago: he is committed to lineups that start Draymond Green at centre with the explosive Jonathan Kuminga and a revitalised Wiggins next to him.
Kerr remarked, “This feels like the best version of us.” “With the starting lineup performing like they are, substitute players who are putting in a lot of energy, effort, and execution from the bench. We’re in for a great run, for sure. We must continue to spread it.
Warriors’ and Dubs’ success is fueled by new small-ball lineups Jonathan Kuminga and Draymond Green are on fire
Since they returned to the court after Deki’s passing, the Warriors have suffered more sad losses than just the one against Atlanta. After Curry erred in his dribble on the game’s last possession, they lost by one point to the Sacramento Kings at home on January 24. Two days later, they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in a double-overtime instant classic at Chase Centre.
Moral wins are not important to a team like Golden State. Even still, the fact that the Warriors are only a few bounces away from going unbeaten in their previous nine games speaks much about the magnitude of their midseason comeback. Instead, a 6-3 record will do, especially considering that their new approach is likely to continue producing successful outcomes in the future.
Before January 24th, the trio had not had much of a simultaneous run due to Kuminga’s failure to secure a regular role, Wiggins’ career-worst problems, and Green’s numerous suspensions. Up until then, they had only played 36 minutes in 10 games, according to NBA.com/stats. In the last nine games, most of which they have served as starters? With 147 minutes played, Green, Kuminga, and Wiggins have an absolutely dominating +29.6 net rating.
Despite Green and Kuminga coming off the bench, the triad played 12 minutes, or one-third of their season-long total, in the Warriors’ heartwarming victory against the Hawks on January 24. ClutchPoints questioned Kerr on his favourite members of that group after the game.
“Good agility and speed. I believe that Wiggs and JK executed excellent basket-attacking techniques,” he remarked. “I think it changes our team and allows us to get stops, get out and run, and get fouled when they’re out there and you feel them defensively like we did tonight.”
Over the last nine games, the Dubs have been in the top six in both offensive and defensive rating; therefore, it is not surprising that they have a net rating of +10.6, which ties them for the league lead with the Cleveland Cavaliers. As expected given their recent run of good results and the increased playing time for lineups including Green, Kuminga, and Wiggins, the Warriors moved up to eighth place in terms of pace during that time, having previously been 12th. According to Inpredictable, shaving, they rank tenth in terms of average time to shoot following defensive rebounds.8 seconds are deducted from possessions that start on the defensive end.
The identity that Green, Kuminga, and Wiggins’ teams developed isn’t the only personnel development that propels Golden State’s accelerated play. Due to a fractured hand, Chris Paul has missed the entirety of the Warriors’ in-season comeback. He won’t return until after the All-Star break.
Before he was injured, Paul was a game-changer for Golden State, helping his new team stay afloat with Curry sitting on the sidelines. In his final few games before the injury, he had also shown signs of life, overcoming severe shooting difficulties in the beginning of the season. Once he’s cleared to play, Paul will undoubtedly play a nightly role for the Warriors. However, it would be extremely disappointing if Golden State as a whole went back to their deliberate, methodical attacking style, which has been Paul’s career’s hallmark. This would jeopardise all of the recent gains Golden State has made in terms of playing quickly.
When Paul returns, Kerr will have to make some difficult decisions regarding rotations. The approaching availability of Gary Payton II won’t make things any simpler, but at least his playing style is a perfect fit for the way the Dubs have played since fully committing to Green at centre. Though Payton’s extremely disruptive defence, adeptness in transitions, and capacity to play much bigger than his official 6’2″ height make him a plug-and-play replacement for Golden State’s rookie forward, Gui Santos continued to make waves in Indianapolis on Thursday, scoring a career-high 13 points.
The same cannot be said for Paul and Lester Quinones, or for any other player who the Point God occasionally replaced in the Warriors’ final lineup alongside Curry, Green, Kuminga, and Wiggins. Golden State has benefited much from increased agility and all-court speed lately, but they have also benefited greatly from using backcourt tandems with just one undersized guard.
As the season progresses, will this team maintain championship-caliber defence while Paul plays with Curry? Will Kerr ever use three guard lineups again? Will Moses Moody become the victim of a rotational numbers crunch once more?
One of those “good” problems that any team would love to have is the return of impact players like Paul and Payton, especially since they will likely be able to steal the majority of the playing time from recent G League additions like Quinones and Santos. However, their presence also poses a threat to the winning formula that the Warriors have finally discovered after searching for it the whole season.
When Paul and Payton return to the team, pay particular attention to Golden State. The Warriors might become the club that “no one wants to play” going into the postseason if they can continue to be the two-way team that has led to their recent success. However, chemistry and continuity are brittle. In an overcrowded Western Conference, the Dubs simply cannot afford to take a step behind following the All-Star break if anything else were to happen.
