The Warriors are going to rely too much on second-year Wiseman

The Golden State Warriors have second-year center James Wiseman and Kevon Looney at the five as the season sets to commence. With Looney having shown little last season, the Dubs may be forced to rely on Wiseman.

While Wiseman did have flashes last season of potential stardom and there are always small-ball options if he can’t make much progress, the Warriors should still want to add a veteran center like Marc Gasol.

The Golden State Warriors have two centers, one being second-year James Wiseman. They may be planning to rely too much on the young stud.

Wiseman just may not be ready to play big minutes in important games. He did bulk up, which is good news, but the bigger part of his game that is going to need some improvement is defense and, more importantly, his rim protection.

As a rookie, Wiseman, as they did with Poole under much different circumstances, was tossed into the starting lineup. To start last season, they had ample depth with Marquese Chriss and Looney at the five.

This season, it’s just Looney and Wiseman. For Wiseman, he averaged 11.9 points per game and played just over 21 minutes per game. It was a relatively successful campaign for the No. 2 overall pick.

It was his defense that is the most concerning aspect of his game, and one that I’m not sold will take a huge leap this coming season. In 21.4 minutes per game, Wiseman averaged 3.1 personal fouls.

Wiseman also averaged 0.3 steals and 0.9 blocks per game, both underwhelming for the 7-foot center. Per basketball-reference, Wiseman had a 109 defensive rating which could use improvement.

While that’s a team-centric figure, Wiseman is a pivotal, game-changing player and should have been able to get that lower. Ultimately, if he can’t defend, he won’t last long against top-tier opponents.

He’ll consistently draw players like Jusuf Nurkic and Anthony Davis. If he can’t show progress against some of the best in the West, the Warriors will either go small to end games or opt for Looney.

It must eventually be a strength for Wiseman, but without many options, there aren’t many other places the Warriors can go, one reason they could use a veteran behind the two relatively young centers.