“He showed it last year, too,” Kerr said. “I don’t think we had the depth and versatility last year that we have now. So to me, the model is ’22. We won the championship in ’22 with a similar mix to what we have now. Good on both sides of the ball, establish the defense — I think we finished second in efficiency that year, if I’m not mistaken. We’ve established this year we’re good defensively. We still have things to work on. But we won a title two years ago with a group built around Steph and defense. And that’s the formula this year, too.”
Statistical proof: The Warriors are currently fourth in defensive rating; they were 16th last season. They are also third in offensive rating this season, after ranking ninth last season. Kerr points out that, obviously, Curry’s epic shot-making was crucial against Dallas on Tuesday, but the Warriors wouldn’t have won that game without four consecutive defensive stops down the stretch.
The Warriors can also sustain the frenetic defensive pace because they have a faster, deeper, stronger rotation than they did last season. At new defensive coordinator Jerry Stackhouse’s urging, they’re harrying opponents by blitzing almost every pick-and-roll, something very different than what the Warriors have done in this era. They give up some open shots this way, but they also cause a lot more chaos and give aggressive, athletic defenders like De’Anthony Melton, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, and Gary Payton II a lot of room to fly around.
“We really decided on doing that after the personnel moves this summer,” Kerr said. “Once we added Melt, once we knew GP and Wiggs were healthy and looking good, once we decided to play bigger with Trayce [Jackson-Davis] and Draymond, it just made sense. Jerry really pushed for it and he’s been great at teaching it. But it’s a combination really of personnel and what makes the most sense for our team. Wouldn’t have made sense last year.”
As Jackson-Davis noted, they all know they can exert max energy every second because if they get tired, Kerr can just send the next guy in and the next guy after that. The depth took a hit on Thursday when the Warriors announced that Melton, an offseason addition who just recently was inserted quite successfully into the starting lineup, sprained his ACL in Tuesday’s game and, with more tests due, is out at least for Friday’s game against Memphis. But Kerr emphasized that the Warriors have many other guards and wings who can step into the starting lineup and get more minutes — Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski, GP2, Buddy Hield. One of the key benefits of having a 12-man rotation is that if you lose somebody for a while, you still have an 11-man rotation.