Golden State Warriors: Analyzing how David West anchors the bench
By Derek Tahara
David West has become one of the most valuable contributors off the bench for the Golden State Warriors this season.
Usually, as you get older you’re supposed to lose your playing ability; however, 37-year-old David West of the Golden State Warriors is playing as if he’s 10 years younger.
He has a reliable 15-foot jumper and the witty passing ability that throws defenses off balance. To go along with his jumper and passing skills, he brings a toughness and an unrivaled, no nonsense attitude to the floor. As soon as West comes into the game, he makes an immediate impact.
Per basketball-reference.com, the veteran is averaging 7.0 points per game, 3.4 rebounds per game and 1.1 blocks per game. He is also shooting 60.6% from the field for the season, and he is doing this all in an average of 13 minutes per game.
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Per 36 minutes this season, West is averaging 18.8 points, 9.1 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 3.0 blocks.
Now, that is production.
The Warriors would simply not be as successful as they are without the veteran services of West. He’s a reliable mid-range shooter, a great passer, and he just fits Steve Kerr‘s system.
Additionally, West brings the rugged style of play off the bench that let’s everyone know that you don’t want to mess with him. Every team needs an enforcer, and David West is Golden State’s.
One thing that’s incredibly impressive to me is how solid of a defender West is. He is always in the right place at the right time, and the timing on his defensive rotations are amazing.
His timing on the blocked shots that he has are incredible as well. Here he is blocking Lonzo Ball at the end of the game on Kobe Bryant night:
Breaking down the play: displaying impeccable timing, West hustles back on defense and waits for Ball to go up with the layup, swatting it at just the right moment. This one play singlehandedly saved the Warriors from having to go into double-overtime, which no one wanted to see anyway.
With West anchoring the second unit with his toughness, smarts, mid-range shooting, passing and defense, he has become one of the Warriors’ most valuable bench pieces and will more than likely continue to be for the rest of the season.