Golden State Warriors: Somehow Winning Without Andrew Bogut
Last year, if you had told any Golden State Warriors fan they Dubs would win 16 straight games, they probably would have laughed and asked how it was possible for their team to play 16 straight Eastern Conference teams. If you had thrown in that Andrew Bogut would be sidelined for three of those games, they would have called you crazy.
Had you included that David Lee would be out for all 16 of those games, they might have had you committed.
Yet somehow, the streak improbably continues. Because of knee tendinitis, Bogut has played a grand total of two minutes in the Dubs’ last four games. Lee is still out with that hamstring injury, though he’s close to returning. Without Golden State’s two frontcourt starters from last season, how have the Warriors beaten three straight Western Conference teams who figure to be in the playoff mix?
The numbers show pretty clearly where the Dubs are weakest right now. Though they’ve gone 3-0 in their last three games, besting the Houston Rockets at home before going on the road against the Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans, the undersized Warriors could certainly use Bogut back.
In their last three games, the Dubs are giving up 52 points in the paint per game and despite being the NBA’s second highest rebounding team, they’ve lost the battle on the boards in two of those contests.
However, as has been the case all season, the Dubs are still managing to defend exceptionally well, even with Bogut sidelined. Despite a big night from James Harden, the Dubs held Houston to 41.1 percent shooting as a team. The next game in Dallas, the Warriors limited the league’s most prolific offense to 98 points on 40.4 percent shooting.
And though the Pellies somehow shot 46.5 percent against the Dubs without Anthony Davis, the Warriors have still not allowed an opponent to shoot 50 percent or better from the floor in 23 games. Yes, you read that right: not a single team has made half their shots against Golden State.
How have the Dubs been getting it done defensively without their anchor in the middle? It starts with the versatility of Draymond Green, who has allowed Steve Kerr to trot out small-ball lineups with Green playing center. Festus Ezeli has been starting at center with Bogut out, but he’s only playing 17.7 minutes per game in his new role.
Marreese Speights provides some minutes in the middle off the bench, but he’s only playing 19.3 minutes per game in Golden State’s last three contests as well. With Kerr resorting to small-ball lineups, the Dubs are a little vulnerable protecting the rim, but Green has actually racked up six blocks in his last three games.
They Dubs are also making up for Bogut’s absence by shooting the ball efficiently, getting to the foul line (27.3 times per game) and scoring in transition (21 points per game). Of course, it never hurts a three-game win streak when Stephen Curry averages 27.7 points, 7.3 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game, but it’s been a total team effort that has extended Golden State’s win streak to 16 consecutive games.
We shouldn’t kid ourselves here. The Golden State Warriors aren’t winning a championship without Andrew Bogut on the floor, no matter how great Draymond Green has been. Bogut’s recent injury problems are a major long-term concern for this team, no matter how much they’ve been downplayed thus far in the short-term.
But the Warriors only have two tough games left — at the Memphis Grizzlies and versus the Oklahoma City Thunder at home — before their schedule lightens up a little bit. If they can make it through that stretch, or if Bogut is able to suit up again soon, this streak has the chance to become something remarkable.