Golden State Warriors: 5 Takeaways From Opening Week

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Oct 28, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (9) is defended by New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) and guard Tim Frazier during the second half of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Warriors defeated the Pelicans 122-114. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Bench Still A Work In Progress

The Warriors’ “Strength In Numbers” slogan no longer applies after losing Harrison Barnes, Andrew Bogut, Marreese Speights, Leandro Barbosa, Festus Ezeli and Brandon Rush over the summer.

Now, Golden State will rely on Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston more than ever in the second unit, in addition to relatively unproven guys like Ian Clark, Patrick McCaw and Kevon Looney and aging veterans like David West and Anderson Varejao.

So far, it’s definitely been a work in progress. While last season’s bench was not a high scoring unit, they did finish third in the association in plus/minus at +1.4. Through four games, the Warriors’ second unit ranks 24th in scoring (27.5 points per game) and 17th in plus/minus (-1.9).

From last night’s game:

GSW starters: 84 points, 29 reb
SAS starters: 75 points, 30 reb

GSW bench: 16 pts, 6 reb
SAS bench: 54 pts, 25 reb
— HoopsHabit (@HoopsHabit) October 26, 2016

That being said, it’s not all bad. Iguodala and Livingston will provide Steve Kerr with two trustworthy options off the bench come playoff time, and if one of West, McCaw or Clark can develop into a reliable reserve over the full season, that will provide the Dubs with a working eight-man rotation.

Clark’s career-high 22 points on 8-of-8 shooting were a positive sign that he could be due for a larger role off the bench, but considering he tallied just eight points on 3-of-14 shooting in the three games prior, it’s too soon to make any definitive declarations just yet.

Per @warriors, Ian Clark the first GSW reserve to take at least eight shots in a game without missing since Chris Mullin in 1996.
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) November 2, 2016

Depth is more useful for winning games in the regular season than it is in the playoffs, as shortened rotations from the Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder showed us last year. If Iggy and Livingston can avoid falling off, and guys like Clark, West, McCaw and Looney simply learn how to protect leads, the Dubs will be a very tough team to beat.

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