When it comes to the Golden State Warriors, everybody knows their world revolves around Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. As the three faces and leaders of the Warriors dynasty, they’ve been dominating the league together for years in what has been a historic run.
As recently as last season, the Dubs were proving themselves as the best team in basketball and captured the Larry O’Brien trophy to show for it.
Sadly, the Warriors followed it up by allowing several key rotation players to leave for nothing, including defensive stud Gary Payton II, who signed with the Trail Blazers that summer.
According to Draymond, the loss of GPII was huge for them and part of the reason for their early-season struggles.
“Absolutely hated, and still hate, that GP is not here and to see him go. Number one, you build a relationship with guys, and the relationship that we’ve been able to build, you hate to see that separated. In the NBA, everybody’s living their own lives and yes you stay in touch and all of that but it’s nothing like being together on a day-to-day basis. And then what Gary brought to our team. What he did on the defensive end we all know, but what he did and brought on the offensive end, people don’t understand. Because having a lob threat gives you the same spacing as someone that’s spaced out shooting.”
Saying goodbye to a two-way veteran like GP for nothing was a huge loss for the Warriors, and it looks even worse for them now given how much they could use a guy like him off the bench.
We are seeing in today’s NBA how much having a strong supporting cast matters to success, and the Warriors are finding out first-hand what a big mistake they made letting some of their crucial cast members walk away.
Draymond Green Not Concerned About Warriors’ Struggles
Despite the thin rotation and a sub-.500 record, Draymond doesn’t yet have any doubts about his team’s capabilities to win the title. As he told Stephen A. on ‘Know Mercy’ he’s very confident that the Warriors can turn it around.
“Very confident. We’re very confident because ultimately we know what it takes,” Green told Stephen A. Smith on Know Mercy. “All those teams that you just mentioned —Memphis, Dallas, New Orleans, Denver, Sacramento — they’re having incredible seasons. You gotta tip your hat to those guys. Joker’s playing at the MVP level we’ve come accustomed to, Ja as you say is ‘box office,’ Luka the same thing. Zion, CJ and those guys. You gotta pay attention to those guys and understand what they’ve got goin, but I think for us personally, we know that it’s more about us than it is about them.”
Even with Curry back, and back to his MVP form, the Warriors are going to have to make some changes if they want to maximize their chances for a repeat this season.
If they are willing to trade some of their young guys at a discount, they could bring in some players and veterans to help round out their bench and balance the roster.
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