OAKLAND–Over the past three seasons, the Warriors have won two NBA titles, and the one year they were left at the altar, they finished the regular season with 73 wins.
That’s why it came as a mild surprise when Golden State head coach Steve Kerr said at the franchise’s media day he expected this year’s team to be his deepest yet. In three seasons at the helm of the Warriors, Kerr is 207-39, and although many of those victories were credited to him when he was forced to take a medical leave due to back issues, the record speaks for itself.
Clearly, Kerr is doing something right. So when he talks, people listen. And coming off a 67-15 season, Kerr has every right to believe that the Warriors will indeed be deeper.
This offseason, Golden State added a pair of proven veterans, Nick Young and Omri Casspi, to play with the team’s second unit, and purchased the 38th overall pick in the NBA Draft from the Chicago Bulls to add rookie big man Jordan Bell.
While it’s possible the Warriors will experience growing pains early on this season as the new additions assimilate, the core of the roster which includes Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andre Igoudala and Shaun Livingston is all back. So too is starting center Zaza Pachulia, and his primary backups, David West and JaVale McGee.
On Wednesday, Curry said Kerr’s comments about the Warriors possibly being even deeper this year didn’t raise any eyebrows around Golden State’s facility. With all the stars back and key reinforcements added, the team is ready to defend its crown.
“It’s not surprising for us, that’s why they’re here,” Curry said of the additions. “You wouldn’t sign anybody unless you thought they would have a huge impact.”
Curry broke down the type of impact that Casspi, Young and Bell can all have for the Warriors this season, and started with the rookie forward who is already being asked to study the way Green plays and learn about the intangibles it takes to play defense at a high level in the NBA.
“Lucky enough to draft Jordan, get that spot in the draft to pick him,” Curry said. “Understand that he could be a huge threat on the defensive end especially, blocking shots, rebounding, and being a versatile guy who can guard a bunch of different positions. Offensively adapting to the NBA style of play.”
Young is the oldest member of the trio and the most experienced player of the bunch, but he’s spent the majority of his career playing for losing franchises. The transition to Golden State has been a bit of a culture shock for the 32-year-old guard, but on Wednesday, Curry said he appreciates Young’s willingness to learn the Warriors’ system and prepare himself to be an asset by the start of the regular season.
“I don’t know, it seems like he’s learning every day our tendencies and our fundamentals from the team’s standpoint and it’s been an unorthodox training camp schedule-wise and I know he wants to work on himself to get ready for the regular season and there’s time for that,” Curry said. “No doubt it’ll have a huge impact on our season throughout the year.”
The addition that appears to be flying under the radar, at least in the preseason, is Casspi. The 29-year-old wing spent five seasons with the Sacramento Kings, and engaged with Curry in a wild 2015 shootout that lives on as one of the most impressive shooting displays against the Warriors during the Kerr era. Now, Casspi will don blue, gold and white and Curry said he’s a natural fit for the Warriors’ offensive sets.
“Omri, his game is so well-suited to how we play,” Curry said. “You can see that in the first two preseason games he played. He moves without the ball well, he’s a shooter, he’s a slasher, a great passer and he’s made comments about just how fun it is to play in this type of system because everybody gets involved and he has a chance to be impactful on every possession whether he has the ball or not.”
For a franchise that’s achieved at a record-breaking pace over the past three seasons, it’s hard to imagine Golden State soaring to greater heights. But if it does, Casspi, Young and Bell have the chance to provide a gust of wind behind the Warriors’ established wings.