Last season, minutes for Golden State Warriors center Quinten Post were a roller coaster. Sometimes he looked like a legitimate starting NBA center, other times he looked lost. Head coach Steve Kerr stuck with Post, in both the regular season and the playoffs, which drew scrutiny from Warriors fans.
But now, in year two, Post looks more comfortable on the court, and Kerr's confidence in the 7-footer is paying off in a big way. Post had his best game of the season against the Suns with Al Horford sitting, posting (nice) 14 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block. He was a plus-16 in 27 minutes in an 11-point win for the Dubs. The sample size for Post keeps getting bigger, and he keeps impressing.
Not every game will be like this for Post. He's played just 50 games in his NBA career and he'll have the occasional night where he's overwhelmed by an opposing center or can't find his shot (although the shot seems pretty dang reliable at this point). Even still, Post is quickly becoming an invaluable piece of the Warriors puzzle as Al Horford deals with the ails of being nearly 40 in the NBA.
Quinten Post is forcing his way into more minutes for the Warriors
This is with all due respect to Al Horford, who still provides a lot of positive things for a team. But by season's end, I would be shocked if Post isn't consistently playing 25 minutes per game, potentially overtaking Horford as the team's regular starter.
In the two games which Post has exceeded 20 minutes played, he's posted double-figure scoring and recorded at least a steal and a block in each. His minutes, while Horford is out, will be consistent. But Post might be developing quickly enough to keep those consistent minutes even when Horford returns.
If Post can regularly be the two-way force he was against the Suns, it would allow a seamless transition for Horford to be a high-level backup center. That's not a demotion as much as a shifting of roles; plus, with Horford (rightfully) prioritizing his health this year and likely to miss a fair amount of games, Post being the regular starter would allow more continuity in the starting lineup.
The Warriors may have mined another gem in Post, the No. 52 overall pick in last year's draft. For over a decade, the Warriors have gotten frontcourt production from unlikely sources, and Post could be the latest example of that trend.
He'll get plenty of opportunity in year two, and he's on a good track early to prove the coaching staff right for believing in him. At times, his shooting, defensive smarts, and connective ability make him look, if you squint hard enough, like a young version of his frontcourt teammate on the Warriors.