Hoops Habit
Fansided

Golden State Warriors: 3 takeaways from comeback win vs. Washington Wizards

By Simon Cherin-Gordon

(Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

In their craziest game of the 2017-18 season thus far, the Golden State Warriors beat the Washington Wizards, 120-117. They overcame an 18-point deficit without the ejected Draymond Green, a feat which took an across-the-roster effort.

After the Golden State Warriors‘ 120-117 win over the Washington Wizards, Steve Kerr told reporters that he had hoped to play Kevon Looney and Omri Casspi, though he “didn’t want it to be that way.”

“That way,” as Kerr said, meant as a result of Draymond Green‘s second quarter ejection. Green did not take kindly to a Bradley Beal headlock, and thus received his second technical of the game just before halftime. Both players were tossed.

The role that Green vacated needed to be filled, and filled well if the Warriors were to win. It was, and they did — thus giving us a theme for our three takeaways.

1. Warriors defend without Draymond

You will often hear people ask whether Green — who is considered his team’s third or fourth-best player — is the most indispensable Warrior.

The thinking is sound. The Warriors could lose Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant and still have one MVP, whereas the losing the reigning Defensive Player of the Year leaves the defense without an anchor.

The on/off data says that Curry’s absence still sinks the offense more than Green’s does the defense, but the point is well received. The Warriors had a defensive rating of 99.3 with Green on the floor last year, and 104.1 when he sat.

More from Golden State Warriors

So far this year, the Warriors’ defense gets significantly better when Green sits. This is all because of last night. After Washington made 11 of 17 3s and scored 67 points in the first half, it only mustered 50 points on 4-of-16 shooting from deep in the second.

Part of the drop-off was random. Otto Porter Jr. stayed hot, but Kelly Oubre Jr. and John Wall cooled down. Another element was the Beal ejection, which pushed an easier-to-ignore Jodie Meeks into playing with the starters.

More than anything, though, the Warriors started playing Warriors defense for the first time all season. They helped and rotated with a purpose and battled on switches, particularly during Washington’s 20-point fourth quarter.

Through five and a half games, Golden State had consistently overcommitted, rotated late and hunted for blocks and steals rather than playing straight up. That they were able to turn this around without Green — and without Jordan Bell, the closest thing the team has ever had to a Green replica — is a great sign for an underachieving defense.

2. West again asserts himself as team’s best center

Green and Bell notwithstanding, the Warriors have four true centers on the roster.

Zaza Pachulia had a solid night on the glass, but was his normal, unguard-able (very different from unguardable) self. The Warriors went to JaVale McGee for more offense, but he was annihilated by one of the league’s best pick-and-roll duos in Wall and Marcin Gortat.

Kevon Looney had a career night. He went 4-of-4 from the field and helped push the Warriors over the edge late with expert rim running. He did better against switches than Pachulia, and against the pick-and-roll than McGee. Still, the uptempo action got to Looney, who struggled in transition defense and committed multiple bad fouls.

David West is by no means a chasedown artist or stonewaller of 2-on-1s, but the 37-year-old can hang in fast-paced games. His rebounding and passing can start the break, and he needn’t run the length of the court due to his ability to nail 12-to-18 footers.

Without West’s absurd 8-of-9 shooting performance, the Warriors would have lost. More impressive than West’s jumper and inside scoring, however, was his defense. He, in tandem with Klay Thompson, shut down Wall’s penetration and passing windows, while the big man also held his own against Porter Jr. and Oubre Jr. on switches (though the white-hot Porter did beat him on some tough tries).

Green will always be the team’s crunch-time 5, and Bell can approximate him in a pinch. In terms of all-around big man skills, West is still this team’s best center.

3. Casspi stakes rotational claim

An ankle injury, hot shooting from Nick Young and a loaded Warriors forward rotation kept Omri Casspi off the court for all but 10 minutes through the season’s first five games. If he continues to play like he did in his quarter’s-worth of action against Washington, double-digit minutes will become his norm.

More from Hoops Habit

There were three areas in which the Warriors really struggled during the first half: 3-point shooting (3-for-20), getting to the line (2-for-2) and perimeter defense (see earlier stats on Washington’s three-point shooting). Casspi came in and immediately shored up these areas.

He was signed to be a 3-and-D guy, but Casspi made a point of attacking the basket upon checking in midway through the third quarter. He shot four free throws and did a solid job on Porter Jr., while the Warriors cut the lead from 16 to 10.

Casspi played well enough to stay on the court coming out of the quarter break. He opened the fourth with a block of Ian Mahinmi, following up with a big offensive board and a deep bomb that cut the Wizards lead to three. A steal and a brilliant pass to West for a layup later, and the Warriors were up, 102-101.

Essentially on the court during the entirety of Golden State’s 18-point comeback, it is no wonder Casspi ended the game +17.

Next: 2017-18 Week 2 NBA Power Rankings

It is also not a coincidence, and he has earned more opportunities to prove this correlation.

Home/Golden State Warriors