Golden State Warriors: 5 Areas To Improve In Second Round

Good job, good effort, New Orleans Pelicans. With a 109-98 victory at Smoothie King Center last night, the Golden State Warriors ended their first round series with four consecutive wins.

Though the series ultimately ended in a sweep, it was much more competitive than you’d normally expect from a No. 1 vs. No. 8 sweep. The Warriors looked fantastic at times, they had an unbelievable overtime comeback victory after trailing by as many as 20 in Game 3, and they took care of business in the end.

But make no mistake about it: the Dubs did not play their best basketball in the first round.

Give credit where credit is due: Anthony Davis proved to be a nightmarish matchup, averaging an eye-popping 31.5 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.0 blocks, 2.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 54.0 percent from the floor. The Pelicans played their best basketball of the year, they never gave up and a few plays here and there and they might have stolen a game or two.

But even with New Orleans playing stellar basketball, the Warriors did not bring their A-game every night. It certainly looked that way when Stephen Curry started cooking, but the Dubs are still 12 wins away from the ultimate goal with a lot of room for improvement.

Bearing all that in mind, not to mention the fact that the Dubs’ next playoff opponent will be a tougher challenge, here are five areas the Golden State Warriors can improve in the second round.

Next: No. 5