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For the Golden State Warriors, 30 is a Prime Number

By Angelo Mendoza

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2016 Predictions for Bogut and Iguodala

Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Last season, Bogut played 67 regular season games and didn’t play in the last two games of the Finals in favor of Golden State’s small-ball lineup; in other words, the 2015 season was Bogut’s healthiest since the year he was selected 1st overall by the Milwaukee Bucks 10 years ago.

There were reports of Bogut battling through “significant” back pain while playing for the Australia Boomers in the FIBA Oceania Championship. Of course, the Warriors organization would never go out of its way to prevent one of their players from participating in basketball-related activities — especially considering these games were in representation of Bogut’s native country — but playing was certainly a risk that surely kept every Warriors fan wary.

That said, Kerr did an amazing job managing Bogut’s minutes last season, so until the regular season proves otherwise, fans just need to put their trust in Kerr and hope he makes the right decisions when it comes to Bogut in the rotation.

Judging by how well their small ball strategy worked last year and the addition of 6’11 power forward Jason Thompson to a big man rotation already featuring Marreese Speights and Festus Ezeli, I fully expect Bogut’s minutes will be kept at the very minimum to best ensure his postseason availability and to make more room for small-ball.

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In terms of his level of play going into next season, I predict a drop in Bogut’s offensive efficiency. Last year in the playoffs, we saw teams sag off Bogut to better guard against the backdoor cut, eliminating part of his effectiveness as a passer. Teams could try that this year to further limit Bogut’s offense, but I see no reason to believe Bogut’s defense will take a significant drop.

If healthy, I predict Bogut to once again make the NBA All-Defense Second Team.

As for Iguodala, the biggest offseason news for him was he got married, so unless he comes into training camp severely out of shape and unmotivated after honeymooning all summer (which would never, ever happen), I expect Iguodala to bring the same versatility to Golden State as he did last season. I also expect him to garner more consideration for Sixth Man of the Year after coming off a Finals MVP performance, though I’d still probably consider him a dark horse candidate.

Overall, I predict another solid year playing in Golden State’s system for Iguodala and Bogut.

Next: Season Expectations: Andrew Bogut

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