Why Moses Moody isn’t getting regular playing time with Warriors
Golden State Warriors' Moses Moody says it 'sucks,' but he understands
role on team
>SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 11: Golden State Warriors’ Moses
Moody (4) is fouled on his drive to the hoop against the Portland
Trailblazers in the second quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in
San Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area
News Group)
By SHAYNA RUBIN | srubin@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: December 4, 2022 at 6:00 a.m. | UPDATED: December 4, 2022 at
11:34 a.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/12/04/why-moses-moody-isnt-getting-regular-playing-time-with-warriors/

SAN FRANCISCO — Moses Moody took full advantage of a rare opportunity on
Saturday night.

Klay Thompson out for the latter leg of the Warriors’ back-to-back left
17 minutes of playing time for Moody, who has been squeezed out of a
rotation job this year due to an overflow of players at his position.

Though Moody finished with a team-worst minus-16, he went 3-for-3 from 3
and 4-for-5 overall. His last two 3-pointers created much-needed
separation as the Houston Rockets chipped the Warriors once-25-point
lead down to five. The Warriors pulled away for a 120-101 win, in part,
because Moody was ready.

“I mean, the guy hasn’t played in a month, and he’s been working so hard
every single day going full bore getting his work in the weight room and
on the floor,” coach Steve Kerr said. “Moses is someone who I just
believe in as a human being, and he showed why tonight. That takes a lot
of character to come in off the bench with a lot of cobwebs and shake
those all off and knock down big shots and play important minutes.”

Kerr touted the 20-year-old’s professionalism, but Moody still must
grapple with a tough situation. Moody has only played big minutes when
the starters are out.

And since averaging 17 minutes per game in the Warriors’ first 10 games,
where they went 3-7, a rotation switch up last month has him limited
mostly to garbage time minutes in others. He’s averaging 11.5 minutes
and sat out for five of the Warriors’ last 15 games.

“It sucks. But that’s the situation,” Moody said. “It is what it is. I
just have to be the best person I can be an work on what I can work on
for whenever my name gets called.”

Moody has a checklist of areas to improve: limiting turnovers and fouls
chief among them. But Kerr and the coaching staff have made clear that
the mistakes aren’t the only reason for his limited playing time. It’s a
numbers game.

Thompson, Jordan Poole and Donte DiVincenzo are ahead of him on the
depth chart. Two-way player Anthony Lamb is getting more minutes because
of his defense.

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Through the cracks of playing time, Moody looks to be developing into a
strong shooter. His form is improving, release is quick and he shoots
with confidence best shown in by his 37% efficiency from 3 on an average
2 3-point attempts last season.

Moody has been talking with Kevon Looney — who has plenty of experience
coming on and off the bench throughout his Warriors career — and
Draymond Green to help stay grounded. But he’s willing to go with the
flow, knowing Kerr and the coaching staff haven’t lost faith.

“I think he believes in me,” Moody said. “That’s evident for him to rock
with me the way he does to throw me in the game, even last year as a
rookie in the Finals and Western Conference Finals and all that. To have
that trust, I have to keep building on that.”

--
Shayna Rubin | General Assignment Sports Reporter
Shayna covers Bay Area sports for the Bay Area News Group. She covered
the Oakland A's from 2019 to 2021 and, most recently, the Golden State
Warriors' championship run in 2022. Shayna is a San Francisco native.