Warriors 3 Things: Playoffs? The Warriors can’t presume they’ll even be a play-in tournament team
The first game after the All-Star break went the same as the final game before it:
A total dud in Los Angeles.
After the Clippers smacked the Warriors around last Tuesday, the Lakers took their turn in downtown L.A. Thursday.
Anthony Davis did anything he wanted — the Warriors are the only opponent who seems to embolden the Lakers’ big — and LeBron James barely played. The Lakers still cruised past Golden State.
The Dubs enter Friday as the 10 seed in the Western Conference. They might be two games back of a proper playoff spot — the sixth seed — and only three games back of the No. 4, but this team looks nothing like a championship contender.
They don’t even look like a play-in team right now.
The Warriors’ home turf might be the playoffs, but the play-in tournament looks ever more likely with the way Golden State is playing. And there’s no guarantee of that level of “postseason” being reached, either. The Thunder, Blazers, and Lakers all could claim that final play-in tournament spot the Warriors currently possess. You can easily make the case all three are playing better than Golden State as of late.
There has been a sense that this Warriors team has been procrastinating all season. Such is the deference we give defending champions.
But if this team is playing a waiting game, the deadline is fast approaching to activate, if it hasn’t already passed.
The problem: Such level play seems far from reach.
Here are three thoughts on the Warriors’ 123-11 loss.
Kevon Looney remains the ultimate winner, even in a losing effort
Looney doesn’t have a fiery personality, and his play is more fundamental than entertaining, but it seemed in the second half that he was the only Warrior with a pulse and the desire to push forward in the game.
His four-offensive-rebound run in the third quarter only prolonged the inevitable loss, but Looney’s solo push has been an all-too-frequent theme of this Warriors’ season. The Warriors can trust Looney on a night-in, night-out basis.
Outside of Steph Curry, who else on this Warriors roster can make a similar claim?
Only Donte DiVincenzo comes to mind, but Thursday’s 2-of-7 shooting performance doesn’t help that argument.
I know it’s not Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, and Jordan Poole. Perhaps in past and future seasons. All three are game-changing players. All three have been inconsistent this season.
You cannot be led by role players like Looney and DiVincenzo and expect to compete for a championship, and one star isn’t going to do it, either.
Wiggins leaves the Warriors waiting and wanting
The Warriors either can’t or won’t say when Andrew Wiggins will be back from his personal leave, but his absence was glaring Thursday night.
The Warriors couldn’t stop Malik Beasley.
Not LeBron James, who shot 25 percent in the game.
Malik Beasley.
To be fair, Beasley is a solid player. The Lakers acquired him and the outstanding energy big Jarred Vanderbilt from the Jazz in the mega-trade that sent Russell Westbrook to Utah (for a few days), Mike Conley to Minnesota, and D’Angelo Russell to Los Angeles.
The point guards were not the most valuable pieces in that trade.
Still, it’s Malik Beasley. He was torching the Dubs.
All I could wonder Thursday night was if he would shoot it as well if Wiggins were playing.
Wiggins has more serious matters to attend to, but suffice it to say the Warriors’ situation is serious, too.
Wiggins’ season has been forgettable. Do you remember anything he has done since his incredible playoff run last spring? I’m pressing for answers.
But he is still this team’s only big-time two-way player. You need those guys in must-win games. Every game from here on out feels like those are the stakes.
If Wiggins doesn’t return to the court soon with his full Playoff Wiggs personality intact, he will likely be Play-In Wiggs come April.
The Ty Jerome problem
The buy-out market is overrated. Ty Jerome is not.
Since Curry has been down, the Virginia product has flourished in the backup point guard role. The Warriors will never have another Shaun Livingston — a long ace defender and dutiful executor of the offense — but Jerome might be the Warriors’ best true backup point since the three-time champion retired.
(To be fair, the competition was Ky Bowman, Nico Mannion, and Chris Chiozza.)
However, Jerome’s strong play is a problem for the Warriors’ front office and coaching staff.
The Warriors don’t need a third point guard on their roster once Curry returns. DiVincenzo can man that role, with Poole and, in theory, Andre Iguodala, taking touches. I’m not sure Jerome has a serious role when Curry returns. Rotations will be tighter to match the high stakes, and the Warriors already have more than enough guards. (And that’s before Gary Payton II returns.)
What the Warriors need is a 3-and-D wing. Anthony Lamb has sometimes flashed, but he’s proven he’s not a playoff (or play-in) caliber rotation player. Thursday night was a bit more evidence of that.
The only buyout option that would make sense for the Dubs on that 3-and-D front is Will Barton, who was made a free agent by the Wizards this week. But he’ll have many suitors, so he’ll likely be paid more than the bare minimum, which could put the Warriors out of the running.
If it comes down to Jerome or Lamb for the Warriors’ final roster spot — No. 15 — the depth chart says it should be Lamb, but Jerome’s play demands it is him.
The Dubs might go with “none of the above.” It might be the fiscally prudent decision, but it’s a real shame, too. Jerome deserves the spot.