The NBA preseason officially ended, and the Warriors' last preseason game was a record-breaking 132-74 victory over the Lakers, which ended with a 58-point victory over the opponent, and became the No. 1 team in the preseason stage of this season with a 6-0 winning record.
The Golden State Warriors chose to let go of Thompson this offseason, and the Big Three officially announced their dissolution, and then the team's management introduced a number of core rotation players in the offseason free market, coupled with the rise of young players in the team, the Golden State New Army also has a set of rotation lineups with enough depth. They don't need to miss Thompson in the new season, and Curry doesn't need to carry the whole team alone in the new season, because he still has enough helpers around him.
To tell the truth, the Warriors after the new season are not easy to mess with, and they still have a certain amount of combat power in the Western Conference.
In the last preseason game, Kerr chose to rest Curry, and there were still 16 players on the lineup, each of whom scored points.
At present, the depth of the Warriors' lineup is terrible enough, and it has also set off a crazy involution within the team. With the exception of Curry and Green, the rest of the Warriors players will need to aggressively fight for playing time, either for the starters or for a place in the core rotation.
The Warriors also made a big difference in the preseason. Kuminga continued his solid performance in the final game, playing 19 minutes and finishing with 17 points and four rebounds on 7-of-11 shooting. Averaging 13.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game in the preseason, shooting 54.5% from the field, 44.0% from three-point range, and averaging 1.8 three-pointers per game, it is clear that his shooting ability has improved a lot.
Kuminga adjusted his shooting moves in the offseason, making his mid-range shots and three-pointers more fluid and decisive, which was also the reward of his hard work in the offseason. The Warriors were unable to bring in Markkanen as a star forward in the offseason, and Kuminga was able to stay with the team. Kuminga is an essential trade chip if the Warriors are to trade, but the team is clearly unwilling to give up on him
For Kuminga, who is currently in his contract year, he will have to fight hard in the future. In the preseason, there are also two young players who have improved significantly: Moody and Jackson Davis. The former is the team's leading scorer in the preseason, averaging 15.5 points per game and ranking first on the team. In the final preseason game, he played 18 minutes and had 14 points and 4 rebounds. Second-year player Jackson Davis also had an eye-catching performance in the big win over the Lakers, finishing with 12 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists and 4 blocks on 6-of-9 shooting.
Warriors coach Kerr is likely to use him as the starting center in the new season, when the team is fully capable of putting on a tall lineup: Curry + Wiggins + Kuminga + Dream + Davis.
"My message is to keep trying, keep improving, and keep running," Cole said. We've been talking to him. You can feel his impact when he sprints with all his might. I would say the same to Kuminga and Wiggins. We need them to sprint. So I feel like Davis, especially in the last three games, did that. He and Melton have a good understanding when it comes to throwing the ball high. Yes, Davis did well in training camp and it was fun to see him. ”
The Warriors are relatively thin on the inside, and the sophomore is in need of a stellar look. Davis averaged 6.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 blocks per game in the preseason, shooting 69.2% from the field, ranking first in the team in rebounds and blocks, and shooting percentage was also first.
In addition, the team also brought in three rotations in the offseason, with the likes of Hield, Melton, and Lee Kyle all performing remarkably, and they were able to provide support for Curry and Dream. Hield is confirmed to play the role of sixth man in the new season, and the final preseason game was also a high performance, playing 15 minutes, shooting 5-of-9 and 4-of-8 three-pointers to finish with 14 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. He averaged 12.2 points and 2.5 rebounds per game throughout the preseason, shooting 51.9 percent from the field and 48.7 percent from three-point range, and was able to make 3.2 three-pointers per game. An important purpose of this is to fill the void left by Thompson's departure.
At the moment, Hield is good enough for money and can seamlessly integrate with the team on the field.
Although Hield can't compare to the peak Tang God, he may be able to play better than the current Tang God. Kerr wants Hield to play as the number one offensive player on the second team, and Hield will be able to connect the offense on the court when Curry is off the floor. In this way, the Warriors can maintain a consistent three-point scoring point on the court. Of course, Hield will also have a chance to play with Curry in a new set of Splash Brothers.
In addition, Melton is also one of the important benches for the Warriors in the new season, averaging 9 points and 3.4 assists per game in the preseason, and shooting 39.1% from three-point range. In contrast, Melton is more consistent than both Podzemski and Payton Jr. The next step is how to schedule their playing time.
Finally, there is Lee Kyle, who averaged 4.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game in the preseason and shot 54.5% from three-point range. Although the performance has been inconsistent, at least in the preseason, the Warriors' three new signings have done a good job of integrating into the team.
Don't think that the Warriors could get worse without Thompson. The Warriors are also quietly changing blood, a group of young players in the team are still evolving, and new signings can also bring key support. As manager Kerr said: "Virtually everybody on our roster has the ability to rotate. ”
Kerr also said he could face some tough decisions in the opening game of the new season against the Trail Blazers, and that the depth of the team at the moment is enough for an 82-game regular season, but it will make him think a lot about the player rotation.