The Golden State Warriors saw their recent win-streak get snapped on Christmas as the defending champions, the Denver Nuggets, handed them a 114-120 loss. The game was closely fought even with Nikola Jokic and Stephen Curry struggling to make shots. Ultimately, it came down to free throws, as Jokic shot 18 of them on the night.
Steve Kerr was furious about the refereeing on the night, saying that the league has made rule changes to get rid of defense and calling foul-baiting basketball ‘disgusting’.
“I have a problem with the way we are legislating defense out of the game. We’re just enabling players to BS their way to the foul line. If I were a fan, I wouldn’t have wanted to watch the second half. It was disgusting.”
Steve Kerr sounds off after Nikola Jokic’s 18 free throws: “I have a problem with the way we are legislating defense out of the game.We're just enabling players to BS their way to the foul line. If I were a fan, I wouldn't have wanted to watch the second half. It was disgusting." pic.twitter.com/YBWuldi0Za
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) December 25, 2023
Jokic was the beneficiary of these weak foul rules tonight, but usually, it’s Joel Embiid using it to become the first player since Wilt Chamberlain to score over a point a minute in a season. The current leaders in free throw attempts this season are Embiid (11.6 per game), Giannis Antetokounmpo (11.2 per game), and Kevin Durant (8.4 per game).
Foul-baiting has been criticized for years and little has been done to rectify it. It’s unlikely that Kerr’s comments spark some structural change in the NBA world that’ll prompt the league to finally crack down on a problem that’s hurt basketball for years now.
Steve Kerr Needs To Address The Warriors’ Problems First
Coach Kerr is one of the most respected names in the NBA right now, but advocating for rule changes in the middle of the season is a fool’s errand. He does need to find a way to give his Warriors more stability. Their five-game win streak was ended by the Nuggets tonight, dropping them back to a 15-15 record. If they spend the entire season hovering around .500, they most definitely won’t make a top-six spot in the West.
The Warriors are woefully unprepared for Stephen Curry to have a bad shooting night like the one he had today. Curry is no longer averaging the over 30.0 points a game he started the season with, which is what Golden State needed to win games. As his numbers have dropped, the Warriors have struggled to put games away.
Steph shouldn’t have to be the one to carry the stream, but the reality is that he has to do so if the team wants to succeed. Kerr can’t make any strategic adjustments to improve the situation, so we may see the Warriors make a shock trade this winter. Maybe adding someone like Lauri Markkanen can give the dynasty one last push up the mountain?
The issue for Golden State has been scoring beyond Curry, and adding someone like Markkanen with their assets would not only be a great move right now but also add stability to the franchise’s future. His size also adds an element to Golden State that’s missing right now.
This won’t change the inherent problems Kerr is bringing up with the modern game’s foul-heavy focus, but it definitely will help. We’ll have to wait and see how Golden State recovers their season, if it’s even possible.
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