The Golden State Warriors had a very lackluster performance against the Denver Nuggets on Friday night, having lost 129-104 which prompted head coach Steve Kerr to put three young players on notice for their effort during the game.
Warriors beat writer Danny Emerman reported after the game that Kerr said, "there has to be some fire in the belly,” in reference to Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, and Brandin Podziemski when there is a poor showing like that.
Steve Kerr and the Warriors need more from the young players
This is a subtle but pointed notice to those players that there needs to be more energy and a higher level of play from them going forward. All three have shown flashes of brilliance this year, but none of them played well against Denver when they really needed them to step up with star point guard Stephen Curry out with an illness.
Kuminga scored just six points on the night, Moody scored two, and Podziemski scored seven. That is just not going to cut it against a great team like the Nuggets.
There have been times this season when the "separate timeline" approach has seemed to work wonderfully. The veteran players have performed well and the younger guard would come in off the bench and pick up right where they left off, sometimes even giving the veterans invaluable time to rest and be managed.
But games like the one in Denver are a reminder that this approach has not worked as consistently as one would like. One can envision a future Warriors team being led by Kuminga, Podziemski and Moody, but at this point that sort of team seems like it would be far too consistent to be a true contender.
That is getting ahead of things, though. Thinking about this season, Kerr is right that the young guys need more fire and energy going forward. They have to take that loss against Denver hard and really dig deep within themselves to find that extra level, especially with the tough stretch that is coming up for the Warriors.
After Sunday's game against Indiana, the Warriors will be on the road for six straight. Surely, Kerr is going to be careful with his star veterans during that stretch which means he may lean on those younger guys even more.
They are going to have to step up or Kerr may be forced to rely more on other players like rookie Will Richard who has shown he will take advantage of whatever minutes he's given.
It is early in the season, but perhaps this subtle call-out from Kerr is what these players need to really ignite their game going forward.