Watch: Moments where Golden State Warriors’ two-age timeline collides

The Golden State Warriors’ ‘two-age timeline’ has been a constant discussion point, primarily since the 2021 NBA draft where the franchise held onto their lottery picks and drafted Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody.

The Warriors silenced their critics in the best way possible last season, lifting the NBA championship for the fourth time in eight seasons. However, their Finals performance was propelled by the core experienced players and Jordan Poole, with Kuminga and Moody not in the rotation, and James Wiseman having been out for the entire season.

The trio’s form to start this season have been nothing short of inconsistent, with Steve Kerr’s recent comments putting genuine questions marks on their short-term future as the Warriors sit at a 4-7 record.

The Golden State Warriors’ offseason was predicated on finding opportunity for their younger players, but colliding moments have thus far put that idea into question.

So, why does Kerr lack trust in the team’s recent lottery picks? The Warriors’ system, particularly offensively, is as complicated as they come around the league. Young players need to learn and that involves making mistakes, it’s just that most usually get to do that in a rebuilding team that’s not prioritizing wins. The issue comes when the youngsters make what the experienced heads would label as ‘basic’ mistakes, as outlined in the following clips.

Wiseman’s screening has been a genuine issue throughout his interrupted career. In this clip, which certainly isn’t a one-off, the 21-year-old doesn’t even make contact as he and Stephen Curry attempt to run a pick-and-roll.

Credit to the Orlando Magic though who are building a long, athletic squad capable of effectively switching. They’re happy to place Wendell Carter Jr. on an island with Curry, while 6’9″ Franz Wagner isn’t the kind of mismatch you might get with a small guard often switching onto Wiseman in that scenario.

The bigger issue here is Wiseman’s level of frustration after he doesn’t receive the ball. Jordan Poole, Donte DiVincenzo, any other ball-handler and that might be acceptable. But we’re talking about Curry, perhaps the best player in franchise history — have some awareness to understand that hey, maybe the ball is better in his hands than mine.

Moody’s the smartest of the trio from an on-court perspective, yet that doesn’t make him immune to a simple error when running the floor in transition. In the above play, he and Andrew Wiggins should spot up in either corner, but instead Moody literally follows Wiggins’ pattern down the floor.

Curry’s a mild-mannered character who’s not often flustered, but even he gets frustrated at Moody’s movement. He does get to the right spot eventually, but by that time, any chance of a good-look in transition has practically evaporated.

These are moments that produced visible frustration, so you can’t begin to imagine how many times these small but significant moments arise. You can play through these mistakes when there’s room for error — the team is winning games by plenty and they’ve got a 9-2, 8-3 record etc. But in the Warriors’ current position, they simply can’t be afforded.