Depth.
It was the reason many folks picked the Golden State Warriors to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, and true to form, the Dubs called upon just about every player on the bench at a crucial time throughout their six game series with the Cavs.
It wasn’t just that the Warriors had more serviceable players, their real depth was the ability of these players to play significant roles and impact games. To be a spark, game changer, change of pace or big body.
It’s telling that the Warriors had four different leading scorers off the bench in the six game series. Each night a different player rose to the occasion, really the mantra for the team all year.
David Lee, who had been playing almost exclusively in garbage time toward the end of the year, did his best Barry Zito impression, posting solid games in the gut of the series and providing the coaching staff with another scoring option while the Splash Brothers were shooting poorly.
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Leandro Barbosa played inspired ball on both ends of the court and became one of Coach Kerr’s most reliable player’s off the bench. He played some of his best defense of the year in the series and shot threes better than he did most of the year as well.
Festus Ezeli went from occasional backup center to the only big man off the bench, leap frogging Andrew Bogut as the only true center to play in games five and six, and scoring 10 BIG points in 11 minutes in the closeout game, when the Cavs stuck to their guns a bit more and played Timofey Mozgov.
Jun 16, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors center Festus Ezeli (31) celebrates with guard Stephen Curry (30) during the third quarter of game six of the NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Shaun Livingston thrived once the Warriors fully committed to the small-ball lineup. His ball handling ability allowed Stephen Curry to play off the ball, and when Curry, Livingston and Andre Igoudala were all in the game together, the Warriors had three incredible ball handlers and passers all over the court. Livingston is a more than capable defender and took his fair crack at LeBron James, using his length best he could to disrupt James.
And of course, we can’t talk about depth without talking about the heroic transformation of Iguodala. Iggy almost single-handedly saved the season, transitioning from key bench cog to Finals MVP, slowing down LeBron the best he could and knocking down open jumpers. Iguodala’s number had been called all year, but in a much less significant way. It’s a testament to Iggy as a player that he was phsically and mentally prepared to step in as a starter this late in the year and do so very effectively.
Next man up.
One of the biggest reasons the Warriors were so successful this year was not only the quality of players the team had, but the willingness by the players to accept new roles and by the coaching staff to find creative ways to get the most out of the squad. The team always came before the individual, and when you have the depth that the Warriors had and that mentality, good things happen. Like winning the NBA Championship.