This has been a long-time issue for the Warriors.
After a week off, the Golden State Warriors are entering a crucial stretch of their 2023-24 NBA season with 29 games remaining on their schedule. The 27-26 Warriors are still staring at quite an uphill climb from the No. 10 seed. Still, there is a lot of basketball left for the Warriors this season and with one of the easier schedules remaining, it’s still possible for Stephen Curry and company to rise up the Western Conference standings. But to do so, the Warriors must be near-perfect the rest of the way.
Golden State is just about to fill up its 14th roster spot by converting two-way guard Lester Quinones to a standard contract. Quinones has sneakily established a role in Steve Kerr’s bench rotation, thanks to his hustle and energy on the defensive end and his three-point shooting and shiftiness on offense. Over his last 10 games, he is averaging nearly 19 minutes per game with 6.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists on 40.0 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
However, his “addition” to Golden State’s standard roster still does not address the Warriors’ most glaring flaw, and that is their lack of size.
Warriors’ fatal flaw that must be fixed after the 2024 NBA All-Star break: Lack of size
The Golden State Warriors’ best lineup is still their small ball unit, which has also become their starting five with Draymond Green playing at center. Since Green returned on January 15th from his lengthy suspension, the Warriors have thrived on both ends of the floor. From then, Golden State has boasted the No. 2 offense in the league and the No. 7 defense in the NBA. The team has particularly gone on a surge over its last 10, where they are 8-2, where they have the 4th-best net rating in the Association.
Still, despite their success over this stretch, the Warriors may still need to add more additional size in their frontcourt. Third-year sensation Jonathan Kuminga and former All-Star Andrew Wiggins have started with Green in the frontcourt. While that may be the lineup that will finish most games for the Warriors, they could still use a bigger body who they can deploy in matchups with some of the bigger teams in the NBA.
The Western Conference is getting bigger
Their lack of size is exactly what spelled doom for the Warriors during their second-round series loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in last year’s playoffs. Golden State had no answer for the Lakers’ supersized lineups, that sometimes featured James as the point guard.
Moreover, the defending champion Denver Nuggets, the team that everybody in the West needs to get through, features a big frontcourt led by two-time MVP Nikola Jokic along with a hefty Aaron Gordon and a lengthy Michael Porter Jr.
In addition, most teams in the Western Conference have also bolstered their frontcourt size. The Oklahoma City Thunder added a big wing in Gordon Hayward via trade. The Dallas Mavericks also made big moves by acquiring center Daniel Gafford and forward PJ Washington. Phoenix also signed veteran Thaddeus Young from the buyout market. The West is getting bigger and the Warriors cannot afford to fall behind.
Kevon Looney’s play has dipped this season and has been relegated to a bench role. Dario Saric doesn’t have the versatility or athleticism to deal with some of the more athletic bigs in the league. Finally, rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis might just be a tad but inexperienced to play some minutes in the postseason.
Warriors can look towards the buyout market
The Warriors were not able to address their lack of size during the 2024 NBA trade deadline. They mostly stood pat despite all the trade noise surrounding the franchise in the lead up to February 8th. Golden State’s lone move was shedding Corey Joseph’s contract by trading him to the Indiana Pacers.
But they did try. Golden State reportedly attempt to trade for Canadian big man Kelly Olynyk, who wound up getting traded by the Utah Jazz to his hometown Toronto Raptors.
Now, the Warriors’ best bet is going through the free agents or the potential buyout market to address their most glaring flaw after the 2024 NBA All-Star break.
Golden State won’t necessarily need a center. Perhaps a big wing who can defend would do, though it would be preferable to have a bigger body on the bench just for insurance.
A reunion with ex-Warriors forward Otto Porter Jr. has been floated around. While he hasn’t been healthy since he left Golden State in the summer of 2022, perhaps being back in the Bay Area could help rejuvenate and get his career back on track.
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