Steve Kerr confirms replacement for veteran guard in key Warriors role

The non-Stephen Curry minutes. It's always been a point of anxiety for the Golden State Warriors and the fanbase, reflected in some fairly drastic on-off numbers over the years.

Those numbers actually didn't translate to last season though. For the first time in Curry's entire career (outside the injury-interrupted 2019-20 season), the Warriors were a better team with him off the floor last season -- many will understandably laugh at that statement, but that's what the numbers say.

Despite some of the criticism surrounding his addition last offseason, Chris Paul's presence played a significant role in Golden State not only holding steady, but actually being productive in the non-Curry minutes. Paul has since departed for the San Antonio Spurs in free agency, with the Warriors choosing not to acquire another veteran point guard on the market this offseason.

Steve Kerr has confirmed Brandin Podziemski will be the Warriors back-up point guard

The franchise's faith in second-year guard Brandin Podziemski has been seen as arguably the primary reason behind the decision not to acquire another point guard. The 21-year-old was never the lead ball-handler necessarily last season, but he showed enough in that aspect, and with his playmaking and general feel for the game, to suggest he could fill the void left by Paul.

During an exclusive interview with Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area, head coach Steve Kerr confirmed that Podziemski will be the back-up for Curry regardless of whether he starts or not.

“Well I think BP, [Brandin Podziemski] will fill that role," Kerr said. "He might start, and if does start he’ll come out early and then come in for Steph. If he doesn’t start, he’ll come off the bench and handle a lot of the ball-handling duties."

It's a huge responsibility for such a young player on a team that is still fully focused on winning, yet it's not as if Podziemski won't be ably supported by veteran players. Kerr also pointed to the playmaking capabilities of offseason acquisitions Kyle Anderson and De'Anthony Melton, while veteran forward Draymond Green could also spend some time alongside Podziemski in the non-Curry minutes.

Between potentially taking Klay Thompson's spot as the starting shooting guard, and replacing Paul as Curry's back-up, Podziemski has some massive shoes to fill this season. But for someone whose constantly exceeded expectation and taken on whatever's thrown at him over recent years dating back to college, no challenge seems too big for last year's 19th overall pick.

Podziemski averaged 3.7 assists and 1.2 turnovers per game last season, ranking second on the Warriors in assist-to-turnover ratio only behind Paul.