Kurtenbach: The Warriors are failing Steph Curry
Golden State Warriors: Steph Curry's 50-point performance in losing
effort to Suns shows flaws in 'two-timeline' plan and peril in putting
too much on superstar's shoulders
>Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry (30) warms up before the start of
their NBA game at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Friday,
Nov. 11, 2022. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
By DIETER KURTENBACH | dkurtenbach@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News
Group
PUBLISHED: November 17, 2022 at 4:30 a.m. | UPDATED: November 17, 2022
at 1:21 p.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/11/17/kurtenbach-the-warriors-are-failing-steph-curry/

No basketball player on the planet can make the case that he or she is
better than Steph Curry right now. The reigning NBA Finals MVP is
playing like a regular-season MVP, averaging 32.8 points, 6.8 rebounds,
and 6.4 rebounds per game so far this season.

He’s operating on another level, even for himself.

And it’s all being done in vain.

Wednesday night in Phoenix, Curry scored 50 points on a stunning true
shooting percentage of 78. It was a performance for the ages — the kind
of game that should have been the backbone of an emphatic Warriors win.
The Warriors had won the last nine games in which Curry had scored 50 or
more points, after all.

Instead, Golden State lost by 11 points Wednesday to fall to 6-9 on the
season.

The Warriors are failing Curry. And for the sake of their superstar and
this team’s chances of repeating as champions, it can’t continue much
longer.

>Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) drives past Phoenix
Suns center Deandre Ayton during the first half of an NBA basketball
game, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Matt York)

Golden State has layers of issues — underperformance on offense,
defense, and in its collective team spirit.

Worse yet, it’s a new issue every night for the Dubs. Even when they
win, something seems amiss.

And this team mopes around. Outside of Curry, the only Warrior that can
be trusted to put in a top shift on a nightly basis is Kevon Looney. The
bad vibes are compounding.

“Losing becomes a habit if you don’t fix it,” Curry said Wednesday.

The Warriors are only three games up on the NBA’s worst record. They’re
also only 4.5 games back of the top seed in the Western Conference.

It’s too early to write this team fully off just yet.

But the early returns are clear and damning. With the best player in the
NBA playing at his best, this is the best they can do.

And while the Warriors’ issues are not irrevocable, the list of problems
is so long that a turnaround won’t be as swift as this team’s downfall
has seemingly been.

>Beads of sweat roll down the face of Golden State Warriors' Stephen
Curry (30) while playing against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the
fourth quarter of their NBA game at the Chase Center in San Francisco,
Calif., on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022. The Golden State Warriors defeated the
Cleveland Cavaliers 106-101. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)

>RELATED ARTICLES
Patience pays off for Klay Thompson in Warriors’ win over Knicks
Warriors beat Knicks after having team meeting to address ‘elephants
in the room’
Steve Kerr weighs in on why Warriors have struggled on road
Steve Kerr says he’s ‘failed’ to bring Warriors together as reigning
champs remain winless on road
Steph Curry’s 50-point performance not enough as Warriors fall to Suns

The Warriors first failed Curry by trying a “two timelines” plan and
keeping five players 21 years old or younger on the roster. Not one has
proven to be a viable rotation player this season — James Wiseman has
been sent to the minor leagues, Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody are in
and out of the rotation, and rookies Ryan Rollins and Patrick Baldwin Jr
aren’t ready to contribute yet.

“Getting draft picks and placing them next to two All-Stars? That don’t
work,” Draymond Green said of the Washington Wizards in the summer of 2021.

He might as well have been talking about the Warriors. And that was
before they added another All-Star when Andrew Wiggins made the team
last season.

The lack of depth on this team has led Warriors coach Steve Kerr to play
two-way players Ty Jerome and particularly Jeremy Lamb to play serious
minutes with the team’s second unit. That was not part of the plan. It’s
not a viable plan for the rest of the season.

And then there’s the underperformance of the big-money players around Curry.

A consistent issue is Klay Thompson’s play.

>Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, left, and guard Klay
Thompson watch from the bench during the first half of an NBA basketball
game against the Phoenix Suns, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, in Phoenix. (AP
Photo/Matt York)

Wednesday was Thompson’s 66th game since returning from his ACL and
Achilles tendon tears. He has publicly requested patience in his effort
to return to form, but patience should be wearing thin.

Thompson hasn’t been the player he was last season this season. The
regression is stark and it’s torpedoing the Dubs’ chances of winning in
a league where the margins are tight and every team is out to give the
champions their best shot.

Thompson is pressing. On nights when his defense is solid, his offense
is a liability — highlighted by the brutal combination of bad shot form
and selection. In all, He’s shooting 35 percent from the floor and 33
percent from beyond the arc. That’s not playable in the modern NBA.

And for a player who was once a lock to shoot nearly 50 percent from the
floor and well over 40 percent from 3, the drop-off is deeply
concerning. Is last year’s level of play — which was up-and-down at best
— achievable again?

Thompson didn’t scrimmage over the summer. He blamed a mental block
stemming from his Achilles tendon tear. Then, this week, he told
Bleacher Report that he “deserve[s] more credit” for coming back from
his injuries.

That’s regressive thinking. It’s gaslighting. No one is questioning if
Thompson is one of the great players in NBA history. He will have a
statue (or two) outside of Chase Center in a few years. He’s a legend.

But that legend status isn’t doing anything productive for the 2022-23
Warriors. Nothing else matters right now.

>PHOENIX, ARIZONA - NOVEMBER 16: Klay Thompson #11 of the Golden State
Warriors handles the ball against Damion Lee #10 of the Phoenix Suns
during the first half of the NBA game at Footprint Center on November
16, 2022 in Phoenix, Arizona. 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 Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Thompson is currently the Warriors’ second-highest-paid player and the
10th-highest-paid player in all of basketball. In a salary-cap league —
even a league with a soft cap like the NBA — receiving this little from
a player making that much is a recipe for disaster. When that player —
because of that legendary status — is an established starter playing
starters minutes, the issue is nearly omnipresent.

Of course, it doesn’t help the Warriors that Jordan Poole is wildly
inconsistent (unless he’s starting in place of Thompson, it seems) and
while Green is playing well, he seems enervated by his preseason punch
of the Warriors’ young guard and the drama that followed.

Without Green as the Warriors’ taskmaster, the Dubs are drifting.
There’s no urgency, no focus. Twice in the last few weeks, Kerr has made
the claim that the Warriors are playing “pick-up games.”

In short: Neither “timeline” is working. Just Curry.

But now’s the time to remind you that this is not terribly dissimilar
from the circumstances surrounding this team’s highest moment last June.

In last year’s NBA Finals, the Warriors were a hot mess. Green was
benched in championship-deciding games. Poole was anything but reliable.
Thompson shot 35 percent from the field.

The Warriors could trust Looney, Wiggins, but most of all, Curry who
raised his game to superhuman levels while the Celtics — it must be
noted — coincidently fell apart.

A formula like that can work in a seven-game series — the biggest stage.

But for a full 82-game season? It’s simply not sustainable, even for a
superhero.

Allen wrote:
> Kurtenbach: The Warriors are failing Steph Curry
> Golden State Warriors: Steph Curry's 50-point performance in losing
> effort to Suns shows flaws in 'two-timeline' plan and peril in putting
> too much on superstar's shoulders
> >Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry (30) warms up before the start of
> their NBA game at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Friday,
> Nov. 11, 2022. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
> By DIETER KURTENBACH | dkurtenbach@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News
> Group
> PUBLISHED: November 17, 2022 at 4:30 a.m. | UPDATED: November 17, 2022
> at 1:21 p.m.
> https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/11/17/kurtenbach-the-warriors-are-failing-steph-curry/
>
>
>
> No basketball player on the planet can make the case that he or she is
> better than Steph Curry right now. The reigning NBA Finals MVP is
> playing like a regular-season MVP, averaging 32.8 points, 6.8 rebounds,
> and 6.4 rebounds per game so far this season.
>
> He’s operating on another level, even for himself.
>
> And it’s all being done in vain.
>
> Wednesday night in Phoenix, Curry scored 50 points on a stunning true
> shooting percentage of 78. It was a performance for the ages — the kind
> of game that should have been the backbone of an emphatic Warriors win.
> The Warriors had won the last nine games in which Curry had scored 50 or
> more points, after all.
>
> Instead, Golden State lost by 11 points Wednesday to fall to 6-9 on the
> season.
>
> The Warriors are failing Curry. And for the sake of their superstar and
> this team’s chances of repeating as champions, it can’t continue much
> longer.
>
> >Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) drives past Phoenix
> Suns center Deandre Ayton during the first half of an NBA basketball
> game, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Matt York)
>
> Golden State has layers of issues — underperformance on offense,
> defense, and in its collective team spirit.
>
> Worse yet, it’s a new issue every night for the Dubs. Even when they
> win, something seems amiss.
>
> And this team mopes around. Outside of Curry, the only Warrior that can
> be trusted to put in a top shift on a nightly basis is Kevon Looney. The
> bad vibes are compounding.
>
> “Losing becomes a habit if you don’t fix it,” Curry said Wednesday.
>
> The Warriors are only three games up on the NBA’s worst record. They’re
> also only 4.5 games back of the top seed in the Western Conference.
>
> It’s too early to write this team fully off just yet.
>
> But the early returns are clear and damning. With the best player in the
> NBA playing at his best, this is the best they can do.
>
> And while the Warriors’ issues are not irrevocable, the list of problems
> is so long that a turnaround won’t be as swift as this team’s downfall
> has seemingly been.
>
> >Beads of sweat roll down the face of Golden State Warriors' Stephen
> Curry (30) while playing against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the
> fourth quarter of their NBA game at the Chase Center in San Francisco,
> Calif., on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022. The Golden State Warriors defeated the
> Cleveland Cavaliers 106-101. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
>
> >RELATED ARTICLES
>   Patience pays off for Klay Thompson in Warriors’ win over Knicks
>   Warriors beat Knicks after having team meeting to address ‘elephants
> in the room’
>   Steve Kerr weighs in on why Warriors have struggled on road
>   Steve Kerr says he’s ‘failed’ to bring Warriors together as reigning
> champs remain winless on road
>   Steph Curry’s 50-point performance not enough as Warriors fall to Suns
>
> The Warriors first failed Curry by trying a “two timelines” plan and
> keeping five players 21 years old or younger on the roster. Not one has
> proven to be a viable rotation player this season — James Wiseman has
> been sent to the minor leagues, Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody are in
> and out of the rotation, and rookies Ryan Rollins and Patrick Baldwin Jr
> aren’t ready to contribute yet.
>
> “Getting draft picks and placing them next to two All-Stars? That don’t
> work,” Draymond Green said of the Washington Wizards in the summer of 2021.
>
> He might as well have been talking about the Warriors. And that was
> before they added another All-Star when Andrew Wiggins made the team
> last season.
>
> The lack of depth on this team has led Warriors coach Steve Kerr to play
> two-way players Ty Jerome and particularly Jeremy Lamb to play serious
> minutes with the team’s second unit. That was not part of the plan. It’s
> not a viable plan for the rest of the season.
>
> And then there’s the underperformance of the big-money players around
> Curry.
>
> A consistent issue is Klay Thompson’s play.
>
> >Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, left, and guard Klay
> Thompson watch from the bench during the first half of an NBA basketball
> game against the Phoenix Suns, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, in Phoenix. (AP
> Photo/Matt York)
>
> Wednesday was Thompson’s 66th game since returning from his ACL and
> Achilles tendon tears. He has publicly requested patience in his effort
> to return to form, but patience should be wearing thin.
>
> Thompson hasn’t been the player he was last season this season. The
> regression is stark and it’s torpedoing the Dubs’ chances of winning in
> a league where the margins are tight and every team is out to give the
> champions their best shot.
>
> Thompson is pressing. On nights when his defense is solid, his offense
> is a liability — highlighted by the brutal combination of bad shot form
> and selection. In all, He’s shooting 35 percent from the floor and 33
> percent from beyond the arc. That’s not playable in the modern NBA.
>
> And for a player who was once a lock to shoot nearly 50 percent from the
> floor and well over 40 percent from 3, the drop-off is deeply
> concerning. Is last year’s level of play — which was up-and-down at best
> — achievable again?
>
> Thompson didn’t scrimmage over the summer. He blamed a mental block
> stemming from his Achilles tendon tear. Then, this week, he told
> Bleacher Report that he “deserve[s] more credit” for coming back from
> his injuries.
>
> That’s regressive thinking. It’s gaslighting. No one is questioning if
> Thompson is one of the great players in NBA history. He will have a
> statue (or two) outside of Chase Center in a few years. He’s a legend.
>
> But that legend status isn’t doing anything productive for the 2022-23
> Warriors. Nothing else matters right now.
>
> >PHOENIX, ARIZONA - NOVEMBER 16: Klay Thompson #11 of the Golden State
> Warriors handles the ball against Damion Lee #10 of the Phoenix Suns
> during the first half of the NBA game at Footprint Center on November
> 16, 2022 in Phoenix, Arizona. 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 Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
> (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
>
> Thompson is currently the Warriors’ second-highest-paid player and the
> 10th-highest-paid player in all of basketball. In a salary-cap league —
> even a league with a soft cap like the NBA — receiving this little from
> a player making that much is a recipe for disaster. When that player —
> because of that legendary status — is an established starter playing
> starters minutes, the issue is nearly omnipresent.
>
> Of course, it doesn’t help the Warriors that Jordan Poole is wildly
> inconsistent (unless he’s starting in place of Thompson, it seems) and
> while Green is playing well, he seems enervated by his preseason punch
> of the Warriors’ young guard and the drama that followed.
>
> Without Green as the Warriors’ taskmaster, the Dubs are drifting.
> There’s no urgency, no focus. Twice in the last few weeks, Kerr has made
> the claim that the Warriors are playing “pick-up games.”
>
> In short: Neither “timeline” is working. Just Curry.
>
> But now’s the time to remind you that this is not terribly dissimilar
> from the circumstances surrounding this team’s highest moment last June.
>
> In last year’s NBA Finals, the Warriors were a hot mess. Green was
> benched in championship-deciding games. Poole was anything but reliable.
> Thompson shot 35 percent from the field.
>
> The Warriors could trust Looney, Wiggins, but most of all, Curry who
> raised his game to superhuman levels while the Celtics — it must be
> noted — coincidently fell apart.
>
> A formula like that can work in a seven-game series — the biggest stage.
>
> But for a full 82-game season? It’s simply not sustainable, even for a
> superhero.