Shaun Livingston’s Versatility Key to Warriors Success
By Ben Pickman
C.J. Watson, Acie Law, Charles Jenkins, Nate Robinson, Jarrett Jack, Jordan Crawford, Steve Blake.
That is the list of backup point guards the Golden State Warriors have had since Stephen Curry entered the NBA.
Shaun Livingston is the latest point guard to enter the revolving door that is the Warriors backup point guard spot. But last night was a prime example illustrating how Livingston is a step above the rest.
For the first 16 minutes of the game last night, the Warriors were struck in a rut, in a Jean Paul-Sartre world of nothingness. But midway through the second quarter, the Warriors made the first major adjustment of the series and echoing the great 90’s sitcom Seinfeld, nothing became something.
The Warriors, taking advantage of Dwight Howard’s absence, went small, playing 6’7 Draymond Green at the five position. Surrounding Green for most of the second quarter was Harrison Barnes, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Livingston.
May 5, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Shaun Livingston (34) looks on during the second quarter in game two of the second round of the NBA Playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies at Oracle Arena. The Grizzlies defeated the Warriors 97-90. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Livingston played 15 minutes in the first half and had 16 points. Fourteen of those came in the second quarter. The Warriors seemed to be running an eternal fast break in the second quarter, running on every missed basket, and scoring 10 points off of Rockets turnovers.
Livingston had 41 percent of the Warriors total points in the second quarter, most of which came near the rim on dunks or other nifty layups. His 56 touches last night was the third most of any Warrior as well. Livingston pulled in seven rebounds as well, two of which were offensive.
On multiple occasions with the Warriors small lineup, the rebounder of a missed shot is able to push the ball up the floor and begin the next offensive possession. The added lineup flexibility means that there isn’t a need to slow the basketball down and force feed it to a point guard.
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Livingston said just that: “When we go small, it’s not necessarily small. We have guys out there that can guard multiple positions. From there, it’s just feed off our crowd.”
Take note of Livingston’s use of the word “guard.” Guarding is and has been the key for the Warriors all year. In playoff games that the Warriors have struggled in, Steve Kerr said his players guard like it’s the regular season. When they got off to a slow start, falling behind 17 points, they weren’t guarding. But when they flipped the metaphorical switch in the second quarter, they started guarding.
The Warriors feed off their defense. The crowd and fans feed off the offense, but the players, the players know how important it is to defend.
Livingston’s length will play a major role in the Warriors upcoming games against the Rockets. Klay Thompson battled through foul trouble last night and will have his hands full with James Harden. But have no fear, Shaun Livingston is here. Not Jarrett Jack, not Acie, Law, not Nate Robinson, but Shaun fricking Livingston.