Warriors’ center of attention falls on youth.
Veteran coach reaching deep into his bag of tricks for upcoming season
OAKLAND >> At this point, Warriors coach Steve Kerr has adopted nearly every approach to keep his players engaged.
He has praised. He has criticized. He has shortened practices. He has held prolonged film sessions. He has shown off his sense of humor. He has displayed his competitive temper.
The Warriors have seen nearly every single one of Kerr’s coaching tactics. But as the Warriors
began training camp on Tuesday, their quest to win their fourth NBA championship in five years still centered on something new.
“We’ve got to take advantage of the youth, the energy,” Kerr said.
Yes, the Warriors’ championship fortunes still rely on Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson. For all the continuity they have established in recent years, however, the Warriors intentionally constructed their bench differently in hopes they find a missing ingredient. They will rely more on youth than experience.
“Some of our other players are going to have to step up into stronger leadership roles. That’s kind of the fun part of each year being different,” Kerr said. “You get to see how it all blossoms. And I think our fans will enjoy that process, too.”
That process could play out in different ways.
The Warriors formally ruled out All-Star Center DeMarcus Cousins for at least the next four weeks while healing a left Achilles tendon he injured in late January. So the Warriors will hold an open competition for the starting center spot between second-year forward Jordan Bell, third-year center Damian Jones and fourth-year forward Kevon Looney.
After playing last season both with the Warriors and their G-League team in Santa Cruz, fourth-year forward Quinn Cook has a definitive spot as the team’s third-string point guard. After selecting Jacob Evans at No. 28 in the 2018 NBA Draft because of his defensive versatility and outside shooting potential, the Warriors plan to give him playing time in hopes those qualities translate to the NBA. Though thirdyear forward Patrick McCaw did not report to training camp on Tuesday, the Warriors remain confident they re-sign him. If that does not happen, the Warriors could sign training camp invitees Kendrick Nunn or Alfonzo McKinnie.
“What we’re learning in this camp is about our young guys,” Kerr said.
That is because the Warriors no longer have as many veterans. Meanwhile, the Warriors did not retain Zaza Pachulia (Detroit) and JaVale McGee (Los Angeles Lakers) so they could give Jones, Bell and Looney more playing time. That coincided with 38-year-old David West retiring following 15 NBA seasons.
“David is irreplaceable,” Warriors general manager Bob Myers said. “David’s one
of the best people I’ve ever met. People like that just don’t come along that often. So we will miss him dearly.”
Can the Warriors absorb the absences of those veterans? Kerr conceded “we’ll see how it plays out,” arguing “it’s tough to quantify the impact that David West, Zaza and JaVale made.” After all, West (6.8 points, 3.3 rebounds), Pachulia (5.4 points, 4.7 rebounds) and McGee (4.8 points, 2.6 rebounds) offered something more valuable than modest statistical contributions. The Warriors leaned on West’s jump shooting, Pachulia’s screen setting and McGee’s athleticism.
“We could be really good,” Bell said. “We’ve been working out the whole summer. We’ve definitely improved a lot. I think every year we keep getting better. Our roles keep expanding. And we just keep developing as players.”
To further that development, the Warriors have promoted assistant coach Chris DeMarco to oversee the team’s player development.
“They need work,” Kerr said of his young players. “So we’re going to revamp kind of the way we practice for those guys.”
So while Kerr plans to reduce practices and shootaround sessions for his All-Stars, his young players will remain on the court. On Tuesday, the Warriors also held a twohour session with those players before formal practice even began.
Meanwhile, Evans has consulted with Bell, Jones and Cook on the challenges they faced entering the NBA. All of those players still plan to rely on trusted veterans Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston as well as new arrivals in Cousins and Jonas Jerebko to ease their learning curve.
“It’s about really helping out the younger guys this year, bringing them up to speed. This is the youngest team that I’ve been on since I’ve been here with the group of young guys that we have,” the 34-year-old Livingston said. “Just bringing them up to speed and giving them that confidence that they need to be able to perform in situations where we definitely can use those guys in a playoff type situation.”
Before the Warriors have clarity on if they can lean on their young players in the postseason, they will soon find out if they can depend on them in the regular season. In recent years, the Warriors periodically viewed such games as annoying speedbumps. This time, the Warriors might view them as critical building blocks.
The most notable building block: how the Warriors handle their starting center spot during Cousins’ absence. Kerr has kept the position open for matchup purposes. But he also plans to see how Looney, Bell and Jones thrive during training camp
and preseason play at the position.
After thriving as a defender with sharp fundamentals and film study, will Looney become just as dependable on offense? After impressing the Warriors with his dunks and athleticism, will Bell form into a complete and consistent player? After spending most of his first two seasons in Santa Cruz, will Jones grow into the dominant post player and defender the Warriors envision?
“Just being the younger players on the team, providing that energy is the best part,” Jones said. “Trying to go to the Finals for five years, that’s tough. It wears on your body. You get used to going all the way to the Finals. You know the season is going to be long and you think about that. But keeping everyone motivated is a big priority.”
Will the Warriors young players be ready? Cook attempted to send a message on Tuesday by working out with Curry during his shooting routine following practice.
“We’ve all contributed at a high level for this team,” Cook said. ‘We know how it is to go games without playing and then get thrown in there and play in big moments.”
Soon enough, the Warriors will see if their young players can thrive in those big moments.
• The Warriors have stayed adamant about not offering a timetable on Cousins’ return. But the team thinks he may start practicing soon.
“I don’t think it will take too long before he takes part in practice,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said following the team’s first training camp practice on Tuesday. “But for right now, it’s important he gets his full workout with the training staff.”
Still, Cousins will not play in any exhibition games, beginning with the Warriors’ opener Saturday at Oracle Arena.