Glaring problems for the Golden State Warriors right now
When Steph Curry and Andrew Wiggins got injured, the Golden State Warriors looked like they were going to be in some trouble. However, an incredible display of grit and effort from their young bench and their two players had them trending in the right direction, at least until the last three games of their homestand.
The Golden State Warriors ended their eight-game homestand with three brutal losses, coming at the hands of the young Detroit Pistons, courtesy of a Saddiq Bey hail-mary game winner, a beatdown by the Orlando Magic, and a complete meltdown against the Suns team, which was missing Chris Paul, Devin Booker, DeAndre Ayton, and Cameron Johnson.
Let's breakdown this set of games and point out the glaring issues with the Golden State Warriors.
#1 - The Golden State Warriors lack offensive firepower
Steph Curry was on an absolute tear before his injury, averaging just above 30 ppg on incredibly efficient shooting splits. Andrew Wiggins was having his, arguably, most efficient season with the Warriors as well, averaging just over 18 ppg. With both of the Warriors' main offensive weapons sidelined, the burden of shot creation fell on the young Jordan Poole.
However, Poole, still in his fourth season, was unable to do it all by himself. Curry and Wiggins' return will definitely prove to be beneficial to the bleeding Warriors team. Furthermore, the team lacked the ability to get easy baskets, something that Curry's gravity and Wiggins' paint play helped with.
#2 - The Golden State Warriors have an extremely young and veteran-deficient bench
The loss of Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr. and Nemanja Bjelica over the summer is proving to be a big reason for the Warriors' lackluster performance this season. The Warriors' bench is now mainly young players who have never been in the limelight before. The veterans in this squad include Donte DiVincenzo, Jamychal Green, and Andre Iguodala.
Both Green and Iguodala have missed the majority of the season so far, and Donte is a relatively young player himself. The Warriors miss players with a calm presence that can slow down the pace of the game and hit buckets when it matters off the bench.
#3 - The Golden State Warriors have fatigued front-court options
Injuries to Jonathon Kuminga, Andrew Wiggins, Jamychal Green, and James Wiseman have led to Draymond Green and Kevon Looney playing an absurd number of minutes during the homestand. They simply did not have the legs to play the last three games. Therefore, they often found themselves getting easily beaten off the ball, outboxed and outrebounded by younger, fresher and hungrier front courts.
Wiggins and Kuminga's return should bolster the Warriors' subpar rebounding numbers during the homestand. Despite Anthony Lamb's best efforts, his size simply does not allow him to gather enough rebounds. His inclusion in the rotation does not solve the Warriors' problem.
#4 - The Golden State Warriors' Jordan Poole's inability to defend
Jordan Poole, currently entering his fourth season, recieved a contract extension of $140 million, spanning four years, which is set to kick in the next season. Despite having the size to be an above-average defender, Jordan has not made any progress as an NBA-caliber defender. He is often exclusively targeted by teams to hunt down in isolation.
His defensive awareness leaves a lot to be desired. He also has an effort-issue on the defensive end. Simply put, he is not scrappy enough, leaving the other guard in the backcourt to do most of the heavy-lifting