Backup shooting guard not clear yet
SALT LAKE CITY — Two weeks shy of the All-Star break, the race for the Warriors’ backup shooting-guard job is still undecided.
“Neither one has seized that role,” Golden State head coach Steve Kerr said of Patrick McCaw and Nick Young . “I keep waiting for one of them to just say, ‘This is my job. I want this role.’ ”
McCaw and Young have flip-flopped on the depth chart much of the season. Because they have contrasting skill sets, Kerr has let matchups largely dictate whom he plays more on a given night. McCaw is used when the Warriors need another perimeter defender capable of handling the ball. Young offers Golden State another scorer off the bench.
Though both players have shown promise this season, Kerr outlined specific areas in which he’d like to see them improve.
McCaw, who played 12 scoreless minutes Tuesday night against Utah after missing two games with a mid-back strain, often has a tough time deciding whether to pass or shoot. A career 43.8 percent shooter, he is at his best when he is aggressive offensively.
Young, who scored five points in 15 minutes against the Jazz, is averaging 6.6 points per game on 44.4 percent shooting, but he has struggled to focus at times. Though he has scored in double digits 12 times this season, he is still getting accustomed to the Warriors’ switch-heavy defensive system.
“I think he’s getting better offensively,” Kerr said. “He has a good idea what we’re doing. He sets good screens. He just needs to continue to grow.” Casspi benched: A month after emerging as one of the NBA’s best bargains, forward Omri Casspi is buried on the depth chart.
“I’ve been down this path before in the past,” Casspi said after shoot-around Tuesday. “That’s the NBA. You miss some games, and other guys step up and play well. That’s how it should be, you know?”
Last season, in which he dealt with nagging injuries and bounced between three teams, helped prepare Casspi for the infrequent minutes he knew would come with the one-year, veteran-minimum deal he signed with Golden State in July. Even as he averaged 8.4 points on 65.3 percent shooting in 19.5 minutes per game last month, Casspi recognized that his role was far from secure.
What he couldn’t have foreseen was the illness that sidelined him for three games two weeks ago. On the night of Jan. 11, Casspi came down with the flu, which, combined with fatigue and a cross-country flight to Milwaukee, had made him dehydrated. His back spasms were so severe that he couldn’t walk and had trouble sleeping.
After a few fitful hours of rest, he visited the team trainers, eventually missing wins over Milwaukee, Toronto and Cleveland. Casspi returned for Golden State’s Jan. 17 win over Chicago, only for the Warriors to get outscored by 20 points in the 18 minutes he spent on the floor.
A string of solid outings from Young and Kevon Looney ate into Casspi’s playing time. Over Golden State’s past five games, he has logged two DNPs, scoring two points in a combined 17 minutes.
“Omri’s strength is his ability to stay ready and be a jack of all trades,” Kerr said. “When we call upon him, he’s always ready with his energy and his cutting, and his movement, rebounding. So, it’s a great luxury to have as a coach.”