Golden State Warriors: Game 3 is Steve Kerr’s chance to show his worth

Mike Brown and the Kings have cracked the Golden State Warriors.

Through the first two games of their first-round Western Conference matchup, the Warriors are averaging 24.5 assists per game, down from their league-leading 29.8 in the regular season. Their playoff three-point percentage of 32.3% is down six percent.

The Warriors, who were already the worst turnover team in the league in the regular season, are now coughing the ball up at an even higher clip — 2.2 times more per game. Brown, who served as an assistant coach under Kerr for six seasons, clearly knows where the Warriors have kinks in their armor. Thus far Brown has put on a coaching masterclass, making a mediocre Kings defense look formidable and turning the Warriors’ fun, share-the-ball offense into a sluggish turnover-fest.

After getting outplayed and outcoached, the Kings have the Golden State Warriors dynasty on the ropes. As the defending champions head home to San Francisco, Steve Kerr needs to create a game plan that can turn the series on its head.

When the Warriors host Game 3 in San Francisco, Kerr will have to counter Brown’s game plan and prove why he is a championship-caliber coach. Through the Warriors’ dynastic run, opponents have been throwing the kitchen sink at them trying to see what will break them. To Kerr’s credit, his adjustments and counters have been overwhelmingly successful. During his tenure, the Warriors have not lost a Western Conference playoff series despite several grueling chess matches.

Kerr made some minor adjustments in Game 2 but failed to work, with the Warriors looking even more outmatched than they did in Game 1. Here’s a look at what Kerr did:

He removed Wiggins’ minutes’ restriction, giving him 11 more in the crucial matchup. He let Stephen Curry crack the 40-minute mark in Game 2, and played Kevon Looney less as he battled foul trouble. He understandably cut Jordan Poole’s minutes and gave more to Gary Payton II, who has been more impactful. Curiously, he also decided against using Jonathan Kuminga, who got only four minutes. Instead, Moses Moody got some run with eight minutes off the bench.

So it’s back to the drawing board for Kerr. He’ll need to create a better scheme for Game 3. To be fair, the Warriors’ defense hasn’t been terrible. They are holding the Kings to 45.3% from the field and just 30% from three. Yet they have not been able to put together a full defensive performance, letting the Kings go on timely runs when it’s mattered most.

The most glaring issues that Kerr will need to address are the turnovers (surprise?), rebounding, and points in the paint. It goes without saying that if the Warriors continue to be lazy with turnovers, they will lose the series. The Warriors are also letting the Kings score at will in the paint, with Sacramento outscoring Golden State 114-84 through two games. After being outrebounded by nine in the opening game, the rebounds were even in Game 2, a trend the Warriors will need to continue to improve.

This series reminds many of the Warriors-Grizzlies 2022 playoff matchup. The Grizzlies came out swinging in the first two games, looking like the younger, more agile team. The only difference was the Warriors managed to steal a sneaky one-point win on the road in Game 1. However, starting in Game 3, Kerr and the Warriors made the correct adjustments and turned the series around to win in six games.

And we’ve seen it before. Think back to all those James Harden Rockets matchups, or even as far back as Kevin Durant’s 2016 OKC squad. The point is Kerr, and the Warriors as a whole, need to do better. We’ll see what they are made of in Game 3.

There is more than just this series on the line. A loss in Game 3 would almost certainly lead to a first-round playoff exit, which will lead to serious questions about the roster construction. You can only imagine that it might spell the end of the Warriors’ iconic dynasty core of Curry, Thompson, and Green.

Whatever you think about Kerr’s methods, you can’t argue with his track record. There’s good reason to think he will get his squad prepared for Thursday’s game. Everything is at stake.