Golden State Warriors: 5 Takeaways From Game 6 vs. Thunder
3. The Bench Has To Be Better
Outside of Iguodala though, the Warriors’ bench was appallingly bad in Game 6. Iggy had eight of the Dubs’ 10 bench points, while Festus Ezeli supplied the other two.
However, Ezeli also committed two bad fouls — one on a three-point play for the Thunder and one that cancelled out a Thompson layup — in just one minute action. Shaun Livingston went 0-for-4 and was a -8 in 14 minutes of action.
Marreese Speights also went 0-for-4 in his six minutes, giving up a few crucial offensive boards and finishing the game as a -7 as well. Leandro Barbosa was a -6 in just two minutes of game time. Because of how bad the bench was, Steve Kerr had to ride Green (43 minutes), Curry (41) and Thompson (40) to get the win.
Stars carry you on the road. The supporting cast at home. ... Warriors get another good game from Speights, Livingston, they should be good
— Marcus Thompson II (@ThompsonScribe) May 29, 2016
To be fair, Oklahoma City’s bench was virtually nonexistent as well, finishing the game with 11 points — eight of which came from Enes Kanter.
But the game nearly got away from the Dubs in the second quarter — just as it did in Games 3 and 4 — when Kerr’s confounding decision to have Curry, Thompson and Green all on the bench at the same time helped OKC open up a nine-point lead.
With minutes starting to add up for the starters — including Andrew Bogut, who played 30 minutes in Game 5 and another 27 in Game 6 — the Warriors’ reserves will need to be a lot better in a decisive Game 7. Being that it’ll be in front of those booming Oracle fans, they should be.
Next: No. 2