Steve Kerr’s 12 piece puzzle

After Golden State’s win over the Lakers on Tuesday, Steve Kerr used the 2014-15 Warriors slogan, “Strength in Numbers,” to describe the bench depth of the roster Bob Myers built this summer. “It reminds me of 2014-2015, the talent is there but this year’s squad is younger,” he explained.

Behind the “major six” (Curry, Thompson, Wiggins, Green, Looney, Poole), Steve Kerr can count on two veterans, JaMychal Green and Andre Iguodala, for the moment spared, and on four players aged 25 or less. Donte Di Vincenzo, is the most experienced of this band. He is entering his fifth season but behind him, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, and James Wiseman are in their second NBA season.

Ten to fifteen matches to find the right formula

Kerr and his staff must therefore find the right complementarities around three axes: give young people playing time to develop them; spare Klay Thompson and Draymond Green not yet 100%; integrate new players.

“We haven’t established our rotation yet, especially our second five, but we’ll keep looking for the next few weeks.” he warned after the loss to Denver. “We try a lot of players and combinations, and that’s partly because we’re limiting the playing time of Klay (Thompson) and Draymond (Green).”

During the next ten to fifteen games, Steve Kerr will therefore try several combinations, in particular to start the second and fourth quarters. Traditionally, Klay Thompson, who is the first of the major five to blow, returns to the court at this point but he doesn’t have the stamina for it yet. Tonight, Kerr therefore opted for an athletic five with Poole and Di Vincenzo at the back and the trio Kuminga, JaMychal Green, Wiseman behind them.

Results ? A 22-7 conceded in five minutes, six loose balls, and the following diagnosis from Steve Kerr:

“That five was pretty good in preseason, with JK (Kuminga), JaMychal (Green), and James (Wiseman) together, and we wanted to see what that was going to be like. At halftime, the coaching staff decided that we needed more spacing with this group so we opted for Moses (Moody) instead of JK. And Moses made a good comeback.”

What “second unit”?

At the start of the last quarter, he effectively replaced Kuminga with Moody but also Di Vincenzo with Wiggins to take advantage of a more balanced and more experienced five with the presence of the Canadian All-Star. This version was stronger on defense and tied Denver for three minutes.

“There are two players in this five who arrived three or four weeks ago,” reminded Draymond Green. “But it’s normal to be in this situation after the second game of the season, to look for the right rotations, the right combinations according to the scenario of the game. Tonight, it was complicated but it had gone well so far. “

In the aftermath, Steve Kerr took out Wiseman and Poole to pair the two Greens on the inside. With Draymond in 5 and JaMychal in 4, and the Moody-Wiggins duo on the wings, the defensive intensity went up a notch.

“We will try other combinations because we will have physical problems so there will be opportunities,” assured Steve Kerr. “We have to find our identity, especially that of this second five.”

This identity is what is hidden in the great precepts of play. For Golden State, it is the movement of the ball, the movement of the players, a high tempo, etc. But that’s just the tails side of this identity, as the tails side is all about defense with versatility and switches.

“You have to find your defensive identity the same way you have to find an attacking identity. Are we going to press high, are we going to get on the passing lines, and it takes time to find the right balance,” explique Draymond Green.

A defensive identity to find

For the Warriors, finding that particular identity for the second five is paramount because it’s the defense that allows them to run and showcase all that offensive talent. After a defensive stop, Poole can push the ball and serve a Jonathan Kuminga throw like a rocket on the wing, or he can serve Wiseman in trailer.

It’s been a staple of Golden State’s game for ten years. Whether it’s Kerr or Green, however, they are not worried. They know that with more repetitions and better physical condition, everything will eventually go back to normal.

“I’m not worried, they will improve as the games go on,” finished Green. In the meantime, Steve Kerr will do and undo his puzzle, piece by piece, game after game, until the landscape is complete.

Interview in San Francisco