Positive signs

Leather protectors: The Warriors ranked fourth in the league in fewest turnovers, giving the ball up only 13.9 times a game and ranking behind only playoff teams (Philadelphia, L.A. Clippers and San Antonio). They were tied with Boston for 22nd last season. Considering that the Warriors played the majority of the 2011-12 season without point guard Stephen Curry (ankle) and twice tied the franchise record with only five miscues in a game, the numbers are even more impressive. Road warriors: Despite playing a truncated schedule that included a back-to-back-toback set and a five-games-inseven-nights marathon, the Warriors surpassed last season’s road win total. They grabbed 11 victories away from Oracle Arena, despite playing only 33 road games, a season after going 10-31. They trimmed seven points off opponents’ scoring averages, and broke long-standing losing streaks in Denver, Detroit and Phoenix. The Warriors won in the desert for the first time since 2005, spanning 13 games. Bolstered bench: The Warriors’ bench averaged 32.6 points a game, up 8.2 points a game over last season. Brandon Rush and Nate Robinson

each had five 20-point games off the bench, while the 2010-11 substitutes combined for three 20-point games. The backups often cut into deficits created by the starters, and coach Mark Jackson stayed with the reserves in the fourth quarter of a 93-90 victory over Sacramento on Jan. 31. Threes falling: The Warriors shot 38.8 percent from three-point range, finishing second in the NBA to San Antonio (39.3) for the second consecutive year. The Warriors’ sharpshooting was second in franchise history behind last season’s 39.2 mark. Curry (second, 45.5 percent) and Rush (sixth, 45.2) were both among the NBA leaders in longrange shooting, and Klay Thompson was tops among rookies at 41.4 percent. Just imagine if Dorell Wright, last season’s league leader in threes, bounces back. Golden opportunities: The Warriors started four rookies in the final seven games and, in the season finale, became the first NBA team to start five rookies since Elias Sports Bureau began tracking starting lineups in 1970-71. Guard Charles Jenkins and big man Jeremy Tyler each made a case for being the first player off the bench at their respective positions. Thompson led rookies in three-point and free-throw percentages, and was the league’s most productive rookie during the final third of the season.