Golden State Warriors Complete 2016-17 Season Preview

Less than two minutes into the Golden State Warriors’ second preseason game—a 45-point incineration of the Los Angeles Clippers on Oct. 4—it happened.

Stephen Curry jogged the ball up the left sideline in semi-transition as two Clipper defenders darted out to cover him a few feet beyond the three-point arc. Prudent, this was, as Curry’s range in Oracle Arena extends to the 880 freeway a few hundred yards west of the building.

Curry attacked the frenzied double closeout, drew a third defender in the lane and casually flicked a pass to a wide-open Kevin Durant on the right wing. Curry didn’t even watch Durant’s shot go in as he circled back on defense.

You’ll see plenty of this…Steph Curry drive and kick to Kevin Durant for 3 pic.twitter.com/1AAqGUkgiH

— gifdsports (@gifdsports) October 5, 2016

If Curry’s gravity freeing one of the best shooters alive for an easy three isn’t unfair enough, consider the fact Durant, if he’d hesitated for a split second longer and drawn a frantic closeout from J.J. Redick, could have moved the ball to an uncovered Klay Thompson in the right corner.

This is the new reality for the Warriors: A totally uncontested Durant three will often be the second-best shot available.

Good luck, everyone.

      

Biggest Offseason Move

That photo’s going to take some getting used to.

Seventy-three wins and a Finals fall helped motivate the Warriors to pull off one of the most significant free-agent moves in league history: letting Harrison Barnes go.

Oh, also, they signed Durant.

By adding KD to a roster that already had the two best shooters in the NBA, Golden State assured itself a terrifying offense and even more media attention than its historic season generated a year ago. Whatever new ground this remarkably talented group breaks will be very well documented.

Barnes vacated Durant’s small forward spot, and Andrew Bogut had to go in order to free up the necessary cap space. Zaza Pachulia—Bogut’s cheaper replacement—is close to a lateral move at center. He won’t finish lobs or block shots, but Pachulia is a fine position defender who’ll crash the offensive glass. Like Bogut, he’ll shoot the ball as an absolute last resort—not the worst characteristic on a team with which three all-time elite marksmen will need their looks.

David West signed on for the minimum, still chasing a ring in Oakland after failing to snag one with the San Antonio Spurs. As the de facto Marreese Speights replacement, West brings toughness, smarts, underrated passing and a reliable mid-range jumper. He’s a significant upgrade over the beloved-but-one-way Mo Buckets, who inked a free-agent deal with the Clippers.

Finally, the Warriors drafted Vanderbilt center Damian Jones at the end of the first round and UNLV wing Patrick McCaw in the second. The former could fill the departed Festus Ezeli’s role once a torn pectoral heals, and the latter drew raves as a draft steal from the moment his name was called.

Head coach Steve Kerr likes the handle, defensive instincts and three-point shot he’s seen from the rail-thin guard so far.

“From what I’ve seen in Summer League and the first couple days of practice, I wouldn’t hesitate to throw him out there in the heat of a game,” Kerr told Monte Poole of CSNBayArea.com.

        

Rotation Breakdown

The Warriors lost Bogut, Barnes, Ezeli, Speights, Leandro Barbosa and Brandon Rush in the summer, which has given rise to the myth that depth is now a concern.

Forget Bogut and Barnes in this analysis. They were starters, and by any objective measure, the combined impact of Durant and Pachulia (mostly because of the former) will exceed whatever the Warriors’ previous center and small forward would have produced.

As for the reserves, both Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston—arguably the best bench tandem in the league—are still here. They give Golden State seven starting-caliber rotation players. West makes it eight.

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If McCaw can provide 10 …

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