Warriors’ first loss spotlights issues with and without Stephen Curry
While Curry rested against Memphis, the Grizzlies outgunned Golden State
by 15 points. When he returned in the fourth quarter, he didn't make
another shot.
>SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. – OCT. 28: Golden State Warriors’ Damion Lee
(1) is fouled by Memphis Grizzlies’ Jaren Jackson Jr. (13) in the fourth
quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on
Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021. The Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Golden State
Warriors 104 -101 in overtime. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
>SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. – OCT. 28: Golden State Warriors’ Damion Lee (1)
is fouled by Memphis Grizzlies’ Jaren Jackson Jr. (13) in the fourth
quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on
Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021. The Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Golden State
Warriors 104 -101 in overtime. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
By EVAN WEBECK | ewebeck@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: October 29, 2021 at 7:05 a.m. | UPDATED: October 29, 2021 at
7:06 a.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2021/10/29/warriors-first-loss-spotlights-issues-with-and-without-stephen-curry/

SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors thrive on chaos, so much so that it’s
become a bit of a running joke between Damion Lee and Kevon Looney.

But, especially in stretches without the mess’s master, Stephen Curry,
on the floor, it’s possible the Warriors have relied on their
read-and-react fundamentals to a fault. Coach Steve Kerr switched things
up this season, opting to install only a few offensive sets before
expanding the playbook. The change has drawn only positive reviews from
players, and there was no reason to complain, until the offense stalled
in the second half of their first loss Thursday night against Memphis.

Without Curry, the Warriors were outgunned by 15 points. When he
returned in the fourth quarter, he didn’t make another shot.

“It’s pretty simple math there,” Curry said afterward. “You end up losing.”

“I don’t think it’s a secret,” said Juan Toscano-Anderson. “I think
everybody knows we lean on Steph to lead this team, but at the same
time, we’ve got to look at those type of stats and we’ve got to fix
that. There can’t be that much of a drop off when Steph comes off the
court, especially if you want to be a championship team.”

There are two separate problems to address here: how to best complement
Curry when he is drawing double- and triple-teams, and what do when
there’s nobody guarding him at all…because he’s receiving some
well-earned (and hard-to-come-by) rest.

In overtime, Curry admitted he was pressing and didn’t put enough trust
in his teammates.

Kerr said Curry was working too hard for his shots.

“Last year I don’t think we had much of a choice,” Kerr said. “I think
this year, we have more shooting and we have more playmaking. I think
this team will learn to trust one another, and I’ll learn to get them
into comfortable sets where they can execute.”

The second unit’s struggles weren’t contained to Thursday night. The
Warriors dug themselves further into holes in Sacramento and Oklahoma
City before storming back in the second half of each game.

Golden State is counting on third-year guard Jordan Poole to provide a
scoring spark when Curry is resting, but after a strong preseason
showing, Poole’s play has been a little too consistently inconsistent
since the games started to count.

On Thursday, Poole turned the ball over six times, one fewer than in a
home win over the Clippers the previous week.

The main issue is ball movement, something that occurs more naturally in
the esoteric and freestyling ways of Curry and Draymond Green. It can
take time for newcomers to adjust, and it’s hard to fill their unique
roles when one or both of the duo isn’t on the court.

The Poole-led second unit also doesn’t feature a traditional point guard.

“We’ve got to understand that we’re a different team than a year ago. So
we’ve got to learn how to play with this group,” Kerr said. “That
includes me, I’ve got to do a better job of putting certain lineups in
certain sets.”

The simplistic offense was installed with intention.

Golden State features anywhere from two to six newcomers, depending on
how you define it. (Is Andre Iguodala, back in the old system, really a
newcomer? What about Poole, who’s taken on an entirely new role? Then
there are the rookies, who haven’t seen the court much, or at all.)

“I felt coming in that it was going to be a lot easier for everybody if
we just really simplified our play calls, and that’s what we did,” Kerr
said. “We have options out of each set and we’re adding options
periodically so far. But just keeping things really simple for the
players was important because we’ve got a lot of new guys (and) a lot of
young guys.”

The change of pace generated fans among the players and success on the
court, averaging 115.3 points through their first four contests, fifth
in the NBA, while also producing the second-most assists in the league —
a staple of a well-oiled Kerr machine.

Draymond Green was all on board.

“I think less is more right now, which is great,” Green said this week.
“Steve and the coaching staff has done a great job of keeping it that
way and not trying to ramp it up too fast and confusing the hell out of
people.”

Now, though, Kerr admits, “I think we got into some random situations
too often.”

The Warriors probably can’t lean on Curry anymore than they already are,
not now, at least.

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He played nearly 41 minutes Thursday, 3 more than any other player, and
is averaging 36.4 per game through his first five. The Warriors would
prefer to have the 33-year-old at about 34 minutes per game.

Is it a coincidence, then, that Curry hasn’t scored a fourth-quarter
bucket in three games?

“It’s tough, when you lose you have to start nitpicking pretty quickly,”
Curry said.

His late-game execution, though?

“I’m not worried about that.”

--
Evan Webeck | Reporter
Evan Webeck covers high-school sports on the field and beyond — and a
little bit of everything else — for the Bay Area News Group. A Pacific
Northwest native and graduate of Arizona State, Evan has previously
worked for The Seattle Times, MLB.com and Sports Illustrated.