Golden State Warriors: Ready For Conference Finals (Video)

The Golden State Warriors will make the Western Conference Finals this year. You can count on it. Mark it on your calendars, write it down and take a picture to remember now.

More from Golden State Warriors

It shouldn’t come to anyone’s surprise when

Stephen Curry

and

Klay Thompson

are draining 3 balls in June.

With Steve Kerr holding the clipboard on the sideline this season in addition to returning the same squad, to say all the Warriors need is health on their side is to be overly redundant. They’ve been a different kind of unfortunate. Not the one that applies to suspended players, team turmoil and chemistry issues.

The Warriors’ main problem has been physical ailments that stand in the way heading into the postseason, in addition to a boring and predictable offense.

They Warriors haven’t hooped in a conference finals series since the 1975-76 season, where they lost 4-3 to the Phoenix Suns. With a revitalized offense and well balanced attack, they’ll be looking to change that next season.

Steve Kerr’s already proving he’s a strategic and well prepared coach. A glimpse into his plans for the regular season shows he’s ready to implement bits and pieces of the triangle. He’ll try his best to mold an offense to best fit his roster. Kerr previewed the foundation of what seems to be a version of the triangle, and the Warriors’ brand spankin’ new offense in summer league.

Don’t worry about the missed shots. The majority of the guys running these schemes for Kerr in the video above will be working in the D-league or overseas this year.

A great option for an already proficient shooting Warriors club, and even better use of their agile forwards, Andre Igoudala, Draymond Green, David Lee and Marreese Speights. It seems as if Golden State will throw out their isolation offense from last season for more motion, quick passes, and schemes that move the basketball from one side to the other.

It fixes a number of the Warriors’ previous problems, in addition to curing a few new ones.

First the Warriors start and end with Stephen Curry, that much is obvious by now. Almost 30 percent (29.1 percent) of the points put up by the Warriors in every game came while Curry was on the floor. They were the 10th-highest scoring team in the league last season in an offense centered around isolation and pick and roll/pop options with Curry as the main ball handler.

The Warriors’ ability to score in the upper third of teams in the league while running such mediocre offensive sets is more of a testament to Curry’s ability to hit tough shots. Looking back into Curry’s highlights from last season, you might notice how many of his shots were well-defended.

A gift and a curse for the Warriors. Last year’s offense was so predictable, it led to turnovers and easy transition buckets for the opposition. An offensive set typically contains a number of “looks” for any of the five players on the floor at that time. The Warriors’ offense under Mark Jackson didn’t have many looks, and with Curry on the ball the majority of the time, the bulk of his career-high 294 turnovers were from bad passes.

Curry gave up the ball on 193 bad or stolen passes primarily from isolation offensive sets where the defense recovers in time to Curry and he’s forced to pass, usually to a well-defended teammate.

Kerr’s offense will change all of that, for the betterment of not just Curry’s individual stats, but for the team. Better motion on the offensive end means less doubling of Golden State’s star guards. Undoubtedly teams will be preparing for Thompson just as much as they are Curry this year.

More movement also means less turnovers, which equates to better possessions. Kerr will mentor Curry on playing better off the ball, while Andre Igoudala thrives on a system more tailored to his capabilities as a slasher. On any given night that’s tough for any team to plan for.

An offensive upgrade doesn’t only benefit Curry and Thompson. Kerr’s hybrid triangle will also serve as a great way to hide the poor outside shooting ability of Shaun Livingston and is the perfect system to get David Lee going down low and on the perimeter. The fact that the Warriors are returning the same starters and role players is another plus.

While the triangle is considered a complex system, it’s best operated with teammates who are in good health and are familiar with each other. Certainly they’re tired of hearing the word, and most are sick of saying it, however once again it boils down to “health” for the Warriors.

The Dubs aren’t too shabby on the defensive end of the floor either. While Kerr will overhaul their offensive efforts, the big question mark will be how well the Warriors play defense with Thompson and Igoudala leading the way. If their top-10 ranked D last year serves as any indication, the Warriors will remain in the top 10 of defensive teams in the upcoming season.

Although he compiled a defensive rating of 103 last season, Igoudala tied his career lows in steals (1.5) and blocks (0.3). Pretty frightening for the opposition. Igoudala and the Warriors’ defense has the potential to improve. Andrew Bogut was also sixth in blocks per game last season (1.8) second in defensive rating and defensive rebounding percentage, third in total rebounding percentage while Green ranked seventh in steal percentage (2.8)

Look no further than the Warriors when it’s time for the two top teams in the West to square off. They have all of the necessary components, and while some teams are looking for that last upgrade to push them over the hump, the Warriors have already received theirs.

Home/Golden State Warriors