The keys to the Warriors’ NBA-leading defense — including Curry’s evolution
Golden State and Phoenix meet twice this week in a matchup of the NBA's
top records and two of its top-rated defenses
>LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 28: Paul George #13 of the Los Angeles
Clippers passes under pressure from Andrew Wiggins #22 of the Golden
State Warriors during the second half at Staples Center on November 28,
2021 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly
acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this
Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty
Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
>LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 28: Paul George #13 of the Los Angeles
Clippers passes under pressure from Andrew Wiggins #22 of the Golden
State Warriors during the second half at Staples Center on November 28,
2021 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly
acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this
Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty
Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
By EVAN WEBECK | ewebeck@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: November 30, 2021 at 7:15 a.m. | UPDATED: November 30, 2021
at 7:52 a.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2021/11/30/the-keys-to-the-warriors-nba-leading-defense/

PHOENIX — About 20 games into a season is when a team starts to
establish an identity, according to Golden State coach Steve Kerr, and
this year’s Warriors are no different.

“We’re obviously a defensive-minded team. Everything comes off of our
defense,” Kerr said. “The team has definitely taken on a really good
identity and has a good sense of itself.”

The Warriors’ showdown Tuesday in Phoenix doesn’t only pit the teams
with the NBA’s two best records against each other; it also features two
of its top three defenses. Golden State’s tour de défense hits its
second city after toppling the Clippers, No. 2 in defensive rating, on
Sunday.

Their defensive success is what has fueled the league’s top-scoring
offense. The combination of the two has allowed them to run out to the
NBA’s best record and one of the best starts in franchise history, at
18-2, entering Tuesday.

But, as Draymond Green said recently, “half the people don’t know what
the hell they’re looking at,” when they talk about defense. So let’s
dissect it.

- The evolution of Steph Curry

Effort has never been the problem for Curry defensively, if there ever
was one.

If anything, he used to be too overzealous on defense. Such a frequent
violator of the reach-in, he used to draw the ire of Green and the
coaching staff so often that he eventually knew it was coming.

“We’d used to harp on him, like, ‘Yo, stop reaching, stop reaching,’”
Green recalled. “It got to the point where he would reach and be like,
‘Ah’ as soon as he’d do it.”

Curry has become a master of the passing lane, exhibited most recently
with eight deflections, resulting in six steals, against the Clippers.
The Warriors are tops in the league in takeaways and, likewise, Curry’s
1.8 per game are his most since 2017 (and rank ninth in the NBA this
season). He’s also proven more capable this season than ever of
defending opposing point guards in the absence of Klay Thompson, who
would normally be tasked with that assignment. And remember that early
pair of double-digit rebound games? Well, Curry hasn’t quite repeated
those efforts but his 5.8 per game are the most of his career.

All that — in addition to a stronger frame, according to everyone, and
the benefit of 12 seasons of experience — has produced the best
individual defensive rating of his career, 96.0 points per 100
possessions entering Tuesday, bested only by three other qualifying
players (one of whom is Otto Porter Jr.).

“He’s been great defensively all year. I hope people are recognizing
it,” Kerr said. “Everyone obviously locks in on his offensive
brilliance, as they should … For whatever reason, he has the reputation
of being a poor defender. I don’t see that at all. I think he’s a really
good defender.”

Green has been championing Curry’s defense since last season, when he
saw him take the leap that more observers are noticing this year. His
defense is smarter than ever with no sacrifice in effort, even while
shining one of the brightest stars in the game.

“When he gives the type of effort that he’s been giving on that side of
the floor, everyone else has to follow. It makes our defense that much
better,” Green said. “You should see him in the weight room. He’s pretty
strong. But you also see him putting the work in every day, twice a day,
in the weight room.”

Green joked that Curry’s weight-room routine can be a bit excessive. But
he is no slouch in those regards, either.

>SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 26: Draymond Green #23 of the
Golden State Warriors reacts during the first half of the game against
the Portland Trail Blazers at Chase Center on November 26, 2021 in San
Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

- Draymond Green’s intense offseason

None of Green’s offseason drills are going viral.

They are, however, what he credits for playing his best basketball in at
least three seasons.

“I feel way better than I have,” Green said. “I feel lighter, I feel
faster, I feel quicker, I feel more explosive.”

Any conversation about the Warriors defense starts with the man in the
middle of it. Golden State is the only team in the NBA allowing less
than a point per possession and is surrendering the fewest per game
while forcing opponents to shoot a league-worst 41.9% from the field
(and 32.1% from 3, lower than all but three other teams).

Sipping a postgame smoothie recently, Green professed his rekindled
passion for the game and discussed an improved diet, including cutting
back on the booze. His newfound focus on weight training has even put
him in the gym after games.

This offseason, he focused on the footwork that allows the puppet master
to pull his string.

“We do a lot of work on defensive sliding: the crossover step, the drop
step, just different things,” Green said. “We’d be in the gym doing
defensive slides and crossover steps, which helps you with recovery. You
get beat and your crossover step is important. You can’t keep sliding.
You’ve got to make up that ground. So we do a ton of that. A ton of
explosive stuff. A ton of things working on my lateral quickness. How
fast can you jump after the first jump, different things like that.”

- The big surprise

The Warriors have likely suspected all along that their defense would be
a calling card; they were fifth in the NBA last season, and tenacious
defense is one a few staples of a successful Kerr squad.

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What has surprisingly also been entrenched in that identity is cleaning
up on the glass. Twenty games into the season, the small-ball Warriors
rank among the league’s best rebounding teams, fifth in the NBA entering
Tuesday, with 47.1 per game. On the defensive glass, they’re grabbing
almost four in every five available rebounds, the second-best rate in
the NBA.

“We’ve never been a great rebounding team since I’ve been here, and I
didn’t foresee it,” Kerr said. “We are doing it as a team. We don’t have
one guy who’s Dennis Rodman out there. We’ve got five guys who are
boxing out and taking on the rebounding lanes.”

At the heart of it is Kevon Looney, who has been a magnet ever since he
snagged 17 boards against Minnesota. All four of his double-digit
performances on the boards have come in the past 10 games, a stretch in
which he’s averaging a rebound every two to three minutes.

“It kind of gets like a hot streak. The ball seems to start flying to
you,” Looney said. “It’s something that I focus on, creating extra
possessions for our team. It’s something that’s big for me.”

He’s got Kerr’s endorsement.

“Looney’s playing fantastic basketball. He’s totally underrated,” Kerr
said. “He’ll never get the credit he deserves. Boxes out every time.”

Juan Toscano-Anderson recently relayed the same sentiment to his teammate.

“I actually told Loon the other day, man, I don’t think he gets the
credit he deserves,” Toscano-Anderson said. “I just don’t think it’s as
pretty and sexy as everybody wants it to be. … Defensively, he’s not
getting all the stats, he’s not getting steals and blocks and all that
stuff, but he’s definitely holding us down. He knows the system inside
and out. … I mean he’s consistent, he’s reliable and what more can you
ask for in a guy on your team?”