Golden State Warriors: JaVale McGee should be starting center

Golden State Warriors center JaVale McGee has proven himself to be one of the most effective high-impact players off the bench. With the Warriors getting off to some slower starts this season, McGee’s high-energy game would be a huge help from the opening tip.

The Golden State Warriors have uncharacteristically gotten off to many slow starts this season. The Warriors of old were known for doing their damage early, and almost entirely resting their starters by the fourth quarter.

Game after game, however, the Warriors have found themselves down early, and have often taken until the third quarter to catch up. With these slow starts seemingly become a habit of the Warriors, it’s time for a change.

Golden State’s current starting center, Zaza Pachulia, is a solid big man. He provides the team with what they need from that position, and he couples this with a nice passing game. Unfortunately, Pachulia doesn’t possess a high-energy style which needs to match the rest of the starting lineup.

The Dubs have been uncharacteristically slow at the start of games, and this needs to change. Against some of the NBA’s stronger teams, catchup can be too hard to play. The Warriors recently allowed the Philadelphia 76ers to score 47 in the first quarter. The Dubs countered with 47 in the third and eventually won. Nine times out of 10, this won’t be the outcome. The Warriors should be looking to make a change at the starting center position as soon as possible.

Cue JaVale McGee

Both last season, and this season, JaVale McGee has proven himself as one of the Warriors’ most effective bench players. Off the court, McGee is loved by his teammates due to his energetic, fun-loving personality. On the court, he uses this to his advantage. For the team, McGee has been used as a high-impact, low-minutes player. This has been highly effective against tired opposition players, and it’s helped the Warriors consolidate and improve leads.

While McGee is highly impactful in this role, it’s worth taking the risk and trying McGee in a new role. McGee’s style of play will perfectly match the starting lineup, and help the Warriors challenge opposition teams in early-game situations.

His per-36 minutes statistics total 16 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.1 blocks. He’s only playing 8.1 minutes per game this season, but these statistics prove how impactful he is. In his 8.1 minutes, he is averaging 3.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.7 blocks. The team’s Net Rating jumps from +7.0 with him off the court to +13.8 whenever he takes the floor too.

Next: 2017-18 Week 7 NBA Power Rankings

That is a very solid line for such limited minutes. Having this impact immediately every game will help the Dubs start faster and get out to some strong leads.