The Warriors opened up the season with a victory and ultimately that is all that matters. However, they got off to a slow start, but were able to pull away in the second half. This was Steve Kerr’s first official NBA game and there was a lot to be learned about this team moving forward.
Find out what some of our writers thought after seeing the first game of the season:
1. What did you learn from the Warriors last night.
Rasheed Malek:
Steve Kerr is comfortable playing anyone on his roster at any given time. Kerr was not shy about putting his end of the bench guys in the game which is a bit different from Mark Jackson who rode his core guys for big minutes nightly.
We also learned the offense still needs some time to gel and garner cohesiveness despite their performance in the preseason.
And yes, the Warriors still have a fetish for committing turnovers.
Daniel Leroux:
It was opening night so honestly not a ton. The Warriors did a nice job battling through a poorly-officiated game to beat a healthier but still inferior team in their home opener. Golden State’s defense looked better than I expected considering their hurdles- the team did a nice job making Sacramento’s looks harder even after offensive rebounds.
I also learned that Shaun Livingston can get a few minutes out there as he works back to 100% which is an extremely encouraging development. Those small stretches can help him feel comfortable with game speed and build chemistry with his teammates, an important p art of running an NBA offense. Fortunately, the Warriors should have plenty of garbage time on Saturday to give Shaun more low pressure work
Jordan Ramirez:
They’re a really good team. We might’ve have known this already. Some picked the Warriors to win 57-58 games this season. My number was 55. Vegas had the over/under at 51. All these numbers mean that the Warriors are expected to make the playoffs and win 50+ games, which is preposterous given the Warriors history. But it’s a new era, and beating up on bad teams (even with players missing) speaks to how deep this team really is. Andrew Bogut admits:
Andrew Bogut: “It was one of those games that I think last season that we would have let slip or come close to letting slip.”
— Diamond Leung (@diamond83) October 30, 2014
A lot of that has to do with the increase in talent, but he’s also taking a subtle shot at Mark Jackson. This coaching staff is extremely experienced even if this is Steve Kerr’s first season. It’s not one man coaching the team, and Alvin Gentry and Ron Adams have seen enough NBA games to warrant their own head coaching positions. Experience on the bench will play a huge factor this season.
2. Which player impressed you the most.
Rasheed Malek:
Mo Speights. The Warriors big man who couldn’t hit his patented mid-range jumper last year looked much better in the opener vs the Kings as he was able to find his mid-range stroke and give Steve Kerr 16 points off the bench.
Daniel Leroux:
Andrew Bogut. The man was apparently pretty sick with food poisoning and/or migraine headaches (you could see him struggle out there at times) but he still gave the Warriors eighteen good minutes battling DeMarcus Cousins anyway. One of Bogut’s defensive strengths is making life difficult for opponents on offense and it was apparent whenever he was on the court even if the Aussie had to huff and puff to make it happen. Very few teams have their engine at Center but the Kings are one of them so a rougher than expected start for Boogie kept the door open for the team to charge through later.
Jordan Ramirez:
Can I say Shaun Livingston? No, he didn’t look like anything particularly special in his first game back from his toe injury, but he was on the court a game (or two) early. It was nice finally seeing a point guard in there that the team and fans are comfortable with after cycling through the likes of Kent Bazemore, Toney Douglas, Steve Blake and Jordan Crawford last season. Livingston will be key this season, especially given the lineups that Steve Kerr plans on using on a night-by-night basis. Livingston’s return also might mean the end to the Harrison Barnes’ starting campaign. Livingston still looked rusty, but that’s understandable. His insertion into the game came at a surprise, but you got a quick glimpse and the length and athleticism that can benefit this team once he gets fully healthy. This is the deepest team the Warriors have had in quite some time.
3. How do the Warriors fix the turnover problem?
Rasheed Malek:
Their turnovers come from having too much fun and playing loose which is something we’ll just have to deal with. If they can limit their live-ball turnovers by making the simple play instead of the highlight play, they’ll pit themselves in better situations vs good teams. Against teams like Sacramento, the Warriors can do what they want as the Kings can neither consistently stop them or score on them.
Daniel Leroux:
Time. This was the first game after a tumultuous pre-season implementing plenty of new offensive principles. Furthermore, last night continued the long NBA tradition of referees starting out a season by being super tough on ticky-tack calls. That uptick usually lasts a week or two and then they go back to calling the game “normally” and that will take more than a few of the turnovers off the board. They also did a great job minimizing the impact of the turnovers because the Kings only had sixteen points off them and thirteen total fast break points.
Remember that the Warriors finished third from the bottom in turnover ratio last year with a Mark Jackson offense that generated the least passes in the entire league and the team one spot behind them was the San Antonio Spurs. It will take time but the improvement will come.
Jordan Ramirez:
More ball handlers on the floor will benefit the turnover issues some, but more time with this tweaked offense will also help that number go down. 22 turnovers against the sieve that is the Kings defense is ugly, but it was also the first regular season game under a new offense, coaching staff, starting lineup and bench. There’s a long way to go, and that’s why there shouldn’t be much stock put into preseason games, especially those against the 2014 Los Angeles Lakers. Also, David Lee’s return will add another competent passer to the lineup, which should limit the carelessness we saw in Sacramento.
This looks fresh- good write up guys.. Next time, mix up some women reporters into the discussion.