3 Golden State Warriors who need to lift from their first-round performance

The Golden State Warriors ensured their season would come to an end on Sunday in Sacramento, exhibiting their playoff experience in a dominant second-half characterized by a tenacious defensive and rebounding display.

The defending champions will now face the Los Angeles Lakers in the second-round, holding home-court advantage in the six-seven matchup. It’s a short turnaround for the Warriors with Game 1 tipping off in The Bay on Tuesday night.

The Golden State Warriors will need a number of players to lift from their first-round performance should they wish to advance past the Los Angeles Lakers.

Even Game 7 was hardly a comprehensive team performance from the Warriors, with the game defined by a spectacular 50-point scoring output from Stephen Curry, and an equally important monstrous rebounding effort from Kevon Looney.

Multiple Warrior players were below their best against the Kings, and Golden State cannot afford the same individual struggles against a Laker team that handled the Memphis Grizzlies in six games. Here are three players that need to lift from their performances in the first-round:

Jordan Poole

Jordan Poole was a source of heavy conversation throughout the series, but unfortunately it was never for any level of high-quality play. He started the series well in Sacramento with 17 efficient points in the opening three periods before an ankle injury slowed his progressed. Despite being cleared to go in Game 2, it was evidently bothering him in a woeful four-point performance as he bore the brunt of Golden State finding themselves down 2-0.

With Draymond Green suspended for Game 3, Poole got the start and produced a solid but not spectacular 16-point, five-rebound, four-assist game. In a surprise move, Steve Kerr would start his fourth-year guard ahead of Green for the following three games.

It was effective enough in Games 4 and 5 as the Warriors built a 3-2 series lead, but Poole was disastrous in Game 6 with just seven points on 2-for-11 shooting. Game 7 was a little better though 19 minutes reflects the waning trust Kerr has in the 23-year-old.

Poole averaged 12 points on 33.8% shooting and 25% from three-point range for the series. Given his defensive struggles, those numbers simply can’t continue against the Lakers. A big lift is needed from Poole if the Warriors are to advance to the Conference Finals.

Klay Thompson

Not an horrific series for Klay Thompson by any means, but certainly one he could improve upon. He did average a productive 20.6 points across the seven games, though there was never that signature red-hot Thompson shooting display that fans have become accustomed to.

The veteran shot 42.5% from the field and 35.6% from three-point range, with the latter well below his 41.6% regular season mark. He also shot just 12-for-39 (30.8%) across the final two games, so a quick bounceback would be nice against the Lakers. On the positive side of things, he did have some nice defensive plays against the Kings, showcasing that he’ll continue to be an ultra-important two-way player for Golden State.

Donte DiVincenzo

Given the impact Donte DiVincenzo had on the Warriors during the regular season, it was almost weird watching him have such little impact during the first-round series. He started well with ten points on 3-for-5 shooting in 20 minutes of Game 1, but Kerr’s confidence in him diminished after a 2-for-8 shooting display in Game 3.

The 26-year-old averaged less than 15 minutes over the last four games, including just eight in the do-or-die Game 7 (which included a few garbage ones at the end). DiVincenzo shot 33.3% from the field and three-point range in the series, and his defense wasn’t at its same energetic best like we saw for large periods of the regular season.

Can DiVincenzo find more of a productive role against the Lakers? Perhaps but either way it will be determined by his performances in Games 1 and 2 at home. He’s been a casualty of the return of Gary Payton II who appears to be preferred at the moment, though that doesn’t mean he should be forgotten about entirely.