Golden State Warriors Are in flow. after Klay Thompson left for Dallas MavericksThe team has tried its best to fill the void. Their failed trade attempts for Lauri Markkanen and Paul George indicated their confidence in their young players like Brandin Podzimski, Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga. However, it is unclear whether these players can develop to help Steph Curry, who just signed a one-year extension, win his fifth championship. still, steve kerr have challenged Andrew Wiggins And other role players will step up without Thompson.
“I want Wiggs to shoot six, seven threes. I want Brandin, I want Moses, I want D’Anthony — I want to be a high-volume shooting team,” Kerr said, via a report From Kendra Andrews for ESPN. “The big change is that Clay is not here. So we were fourth in the league in 3-point attempts last year, but Klay probably shot eight to 10 of those, so we’ve got to fill that void. It will come from many people.”
warriors marching forward
Additionally, as the team moves on from the Splash Brothers era, Kerr has also expressed a desire to shuffle the starting lineup, especially after the team acquires new personnel.
In the offseason, Warriors acquire Kyle Anderson in one sign-and-trade, while boosting their shooting even more by acquiring Buddy Hield in another sign-and-trade. Other than this, The Warriors also signed De’Anthony Melton With the exception of his midrange, Thompson is expected to replace some of his two-way ability.
“The starting lineup will have to depend on not only the first five fitting in, but the second fitting as well,” Kerr said. “We have a lot of work to do to figure out the lineup. Everyone can compete, gear up.”
Despite the challenge of Steve Kerr, Andrew Wiggins can’t fully replace Klay Thompson’s production, as the Canadian only has a respectable 35.4% share. shooting percentage For his career from three.
Still, if he increases his volume and percentage, he could become more of an offensive threat in the Warriors’ jump-shooting schemes. Wiggins, who managed to hit nearly 38% from three-point range, will help keep the offense going as teams look to put the load on Stephen Curry and let others go.
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Without Klay Thompson, Steve Kerr and the Warriors will have to rely even more heavily on the small-ball strategy that won them the 2022 NBA championship, and that starts with the elite two-way play of Andrew Wiggins and other role players.
Outlook
However, gradually, the NBA is returning to elite big man play, as many contenders now employ elite centers and power forwards, such as in Denver and Oklahoma City. Timberwolves trade Karl-Anthony Towns So Rudy Gobert now has complete control of the paint. Similarly, the Lakers’ Anthony Davis gave the Warriors a headache in the 2023 playoffs.
Can elite jump-shooting and perimeter defense still help the diminutive warriors return to the promised land?
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