Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has set an impossible standard during his tenure with the franchise. He won three championships and made five NBA Finals appearances during his first five seasons at the helm, and added another title in 2022.
Now in his 12th season with the Warriors, Kerr is getting back to the basics of what made his teams special with a new-look roster and three disappointing seasons in the rearview.
Golden State hasn't made it past the second round of the playoffs since it won its most recent championship in 2022. A pair of second-round exits in a three-year span would be a solid result for most franchises, but the Warriors are the epitome of an outlier.
Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are searching for an elusive fifth title and Kerr appears to have finally cracked the code on how to make it happen.
Perhaps the most significant change has been Kerr's stronger incorporation of the up-and-coming players into his rotation. Jimmy Butler, Curry, Green, and Al Horford make for a stellar quartet of veterans, but they need youth, athleticism, defense, shooting, and downhill finishing to balance their efforts.
With the likes of Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski, Quinten Post, and Will Richard in the rotation, Kerr has found exactly that—and it has the Warriors playing like the Warriors again.
Warriors have gone back to basics with defense, shooting, off-ball action
Golden State is off to a 9-6 start to the season, with three straight wins and a 4-1 record over its past five games. Six different players have led the team in scoring thus far, with Butler, Curry, Green, Kuminga, Moody, and Richard all setting a team high at some point over the past 15 outings.
The emergence of a deep rotation of scorers, defenders, playmakers, and shooters has been facilitated by Golden State's emphasis on team-first strategies.
Golden State currently ranks No. 2 in the NBA in passes made and potential assists, No. 4 in secondary assists, and No. 10 in assists. That alone offers reason to be thrilled about the progress the Warriors have made on the offensive end of the floor.
What may be most intriguing of all about the team's offensive success, however, is that it's also No. 7 in screen assists and No. 2 in three-point field goals made per game.
Golden State isn't just passing the ball in hopes of finding an open man, but playing like the juggernaut they used to be. They're doing as much away from the ball as they are with it, and that's creating the high volume of three-point field goals fans have come to expect.
The Warriors still have work to do as far truly cracking the code on offense is concerned, but it's a massive step in the right direction that they're executing in a way that promises improved efficiency.
Even if the Warriors' offense never truly makes the leap, the foundation of their success is what it was during their championship seasons: Defense. Golden State is currently No. 7 in the NBA in defensive rating and No. 10 in fast-break points allowed.
There's room for improvement in every phase of the game, but the Warriors are playing the style that suits them and the results are beginning to display it.