By: Yama Hazheer
The Golden State Warriors and Steve Kerr should not feel disrespected, although they could feel like they were robbed out of an award. Mike Budenholzer was announced the NBA’s coach of the year Tuesday morning, much to the disappointment of Dub Nation.
While Mark Jackson helped the Warriors reach a 50 win season and multiple playoff appearances, even his biggest fans will tell you that Kerr has done a much better job as the top guy in Golden State.
-== 7 Reasons Why Stephen Curry is the NBA MVP ==-
The five-time NBA Champion had Warrior fans skeptical at first with lack of experience as a head coach. They all saw what happened with Jackson; his ego, lack of game management skills, and the X’s and O’s on the court hurt the team in the long run. Regardless, Kerr was welcomed with open arms and to say he exceeded expectations would be the understatement of the NBA season.
He helped take a team from good to great. That’s hard to do in the NBA, let alone end up with the best record in the Western Conference. Kerr got the job done. The Warriors won a franchise record 67 wins this season and become one of the rare teams to do so while winning games by a double-digit margin throughout the course of the entire year.
Nearly every single offensive and defensive stat improved from last year to this year. The team played noticeably different and hungrier than ever.
The Dubs ended 2013-14 ranking 12th in offensive rating and fourth in defensive rating. The caterpillar did a respectful job in helping the team grow. However, the butterfly took the team to heights they have never seen before. The Warriors ended this year ranking first in both offensive and defensive rating.
The biggest difference in the offense has been the crisp ball movement. Going from 23.3 assists per game with 15.2 turnovers compared to now an average of 27.4 assists per game with 14.5 turnovers. It’s been a night and day difference.
The Atlanta Hawks also improved, but the Warriors clearly played better. The Hawks only had Al Horford for a mere 29 games last season, resulting in their sub-par record. Having their defensive anchor back is obviously going to make them a better team. Meanwhile, Andrew Bogut played 67 games in each of these past two seasons.
Playing the Knicks a couple of extra times in the season helps, too. Regardless, the Warriors have their eyes set on only one trophy this season.
cont’d: What About Draymond?