Hard to see how this mess will be cleaned up
Warriors’ latest loss showed a team stuck between stations
The Warriors are trying to win games and develop their young players. It’s a tall order, especially when there’s little evidence that they can do either thing right now, much less both do at the same time.
The Warriors’ second-half opening loss to the Clippers was hardly unique to this campaign. When the Warriors lose to good teams, they tend to make a scene. But this loss was illuminating.
It showed just how messy the Warriors’ situation is and how likely it appears things will remain that way for the rest of the campaign.
It started with a suspension for the No. 2 overall pick in the NBA Draft. Then, the Warriors added new rotations that had next to no chance to succeed in an NBA game, much less against a title contender like the Clippers. And it was all capped by Stephen Curry doing something we’ve never seen — yelling at his teammates on the bench — and a 26-point loss that would have been a lot worse had Wiseman not played in the fourth quarter.
Yes, in a game where the Warriors wanted to set a tone for the second half of the season, they did just that. It’s not a good one.
And given the blueprint that was laid out in that game, it’s hard to see much changing moving forward. If the Warriors were middling before, they might be worse in the second half.
Worse yet, that might be the goal.
Time will tell on that front — a lot can happen between now and the trade deadline — but it’s all inauspicious.
The good news is that the James Wiseman benching — he was sidelined for the first half because he missed COVID tests over the All-Star Break, causing him to miss the Warriors’ Wednesday practice — is a one-and-done situation.
But even with that in the rear-view mirror, it’s fascinating that the Warriors felt the need to make an example out of Wiseman, a kid who made a mistake but, by all accounts, has his head on straight.
I seem to remember Klay Thompson sleeping through practices but still being allowed to play the next day. (He scored 60 points against the Pacers after one known sleep-in.)
Wiseman’s first half was marked by flashes of his brilliant talent, but more so by the countless frustrations that come along with being a kid in a man’s body playing a man’s game. And it doesn’t help that he’s been thrown in the fire by playing with a team that, at least to start the season, had aspirations of playoffs and a nice run in them. Usually the No. 2 pick has the luxury of playing for a bad team, who focus on development and have patience.
Then again, the Warriors might become that team in the second half.
Kerr promised rotation changes after the AllStar break. They were no doubt necessary, but no one saw changes this extreme coming.
The Warriors’ second unit is now the Santa
Cruz Warriors plus Kelly Oubre Jr., who, it should be noted, is a bad fit with those young ones.
Is this a short-term thing? An opportunity to give some kids some run before outside reinforcements join from out-oftown, or is this the Warriors waving the white flag on the 2021 campaign — admitting that this roster can’t compete for anything of worth, so they might as well try to develop young players other than Wiseman?
The Warriors’ new second unit conceded Thursday’s game. The Warriors led the contest with less than a minute to play in the first quarter. By the time Curry re-entered the game with 4:49 to play in the second, Golden State was down 13 points. They never re-captured whatever mojo they might have boasted earlier in the contest.
The seven-plus minutes at the start of the second was a flashback to last season, when the Warriors were far and away the worst team in the NBA. And, now that there’s been plenty of separation, it’s fair to ask: what good did that season provide aside from landing the No. 2 overall pick?
Not one of their three draft picks from 2019 has proven to be a bonafide NBA player. Eric Paschall is a spot player in Kerr’s new rotations. Damion Lee, who wasn’t a draft pick but who broke out for the Dubs last year, isn’t part of the rotation, either. Both of those decisions are justifiable, by the way. Perhaps Marquese Chriss developed into a valuable NBA player last season, but he’s injured, so we don’t really know.
Maybe Curry needs to start yelling at the front office and not the kids on the bench.
Yes, Thursday was just one game, but you can’t look at this situation and say that it’s not a mess.
A redeemable one? Perhaps.
But with the Jazz and Lakers looming on Sunday and Monday, it’s probably going to get messier yet.