Advice To Steve Kerr: Follow the Leader

Been watching the NBA Finals? Of course you have. You’re a basketball fan. What kind of basketball fan doesn’t watch the NBA Finals? Anyway, I’ve come to four conclusions through four NBA Finals games.

1: The San Antonio Spurs are in very large and capable hands moving forward. Kawhi Leonard should be the Finals MVP and if Tony Parker wins it over him just because he’s spent the last four games ruining Mario Chalmers career, I’m going to be really upset.

2: Unless Miami is planning to completely restructure their roster during the offseason, LeBron needs to bounce this summer.

3: If Dwyane Wade were a cat then his NBA career would be on its eighth or ninth life. It’s just about time to put him to sleep.

4: Finding the right guys to fit your system is absolutely crucial to both short-term and long-term success.

Number 4 is the big one. San Antonio dispatched Oklahoma City in the Western Conference Finals because the Thunder were a two and a half man team. They’re about to defeat Miami because the Heat are a one-man team. The Spurs are an eight to ten man team on most nights. They get various contributions from a ton of different guys; guys who don’t care about minutes, endorsement deals, touches or praise. They care about the greater good of the team and that’s all. That’s the San Antonio culture, from management right down to the 15 man roster.

But let’s assume that in some sort of sick joke, the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs swapped rosters. I can safely assume that two things would definitely happen in this completely made up scenario. First, Gregg Popovich would definitely end up in jail after murdering David Aldridge between the 3rd and 4th quarters for asking him what he thought the problem was with their offense. And second, the Spurs wouldn’t be a 62 win juggernaut just because they were running Pop’s offense. The success is just as much, if not more dependent on the players than anything else.

In his introductory press conference Steve Kerr referenced to the San Antonio Spurs multiple times and for good reason. While it’s still a mystery what the offense will look like under Kerr, I would think and hope that it will be at the very least vaguely similar to the Spurs tiki-taka offense that is based on ball movement, player movement, pick and rolls, slashing and kicking and knocking down perimeter shots. If that is the plan moving forward, Kerr can sleep well at night knowing he has some guys who should fit well in this system.

Stephen Curry goes through spells of sloppiness, but his ball-handling skills are next-level and he is able to see passing angles that not many other guys can. Few point guards can get into the paint as effectively as Steph and it would be difficult to name a single player in the entire league who moves without the ball or runs off of screens like he does. Obviously I don’t need to dive deep into his outside shooting chops; that’s his shtick.

In simpler terms, you couldn’t ask for a better guy to act as the head of the snake to a Spurs-esque offense in Golden State. I don’t think it’s going too far to suggest that Curry is a more ideal fit in the Tony Parker role than even Tony Parker is. This transition into a new era and new coaching regime doesn’t stop with making sure Curry is comfortable and confident. As evidenced by what the Spurs have done all season long, the Warriors need everyone to buy into this system and they need everyone to be a threat. They need the offense to flow freely and the ball needs to move quickly.

This shouldn’t be much of a problem given the guys who are going to be getting big minutes. It’s worrisome that the Warriors really only have seven guys that fans can feel comfortable with out there. But at least they are seven guys that you would think will pick up on the nuances of the offense quickly.

Andre Iguodala should thrive playing for a coach who will likely look to push the tempo and give him more freedom to create in the half court. Iguodala is a gifted passer for his position and like Curry, he’s able to get into the paint and draw defenders away from those shooters that Golden State has. I have a hard time believing that Kerr will take the ball out of Curry’s hands too much, but it’s likely that Curry will spend some time making defenders chase him around thousands of screens. Unlike Klay Thompson, Iguodala won’t look the other way when Curry is open. Iggy generally always makes the smart play. Like Curry, he’s a guy that really should’ve played for the Spurs at some point in his career. This is probably next best scenario.

Speaking of typical Spurs guys, the Warriors found a 2^nd round gem in Draymond Green back in the 2012 Draft. I would expect Green to play a role similar to that of Boris Diaw, and I don’t mean he’ll be the one picking out the restaurants that the team eats at each night on the road. The Warriors could run their offense through Green just as much as they could Iguodala, especially when more bench guys are in the game. What he lacks in God-given athleticism, he makes up for in grit and basketball IQ, just like Diaw.

Moving down the line, David Lee and Andrew Bogut have their flaws, but they also have experience playing together and they’re both capable passers. Lee is a subpar defender, but having Bogut patrolling the paint behind him makes it not quite as noticeable. I’ve already gone on record and said that I thought that the Dubs should trade for Kevin Love, but Lee and Bogut would certainly suffice.

The only question marks in my mind are Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes. Thompson, like Curry, is a lights out shooter who moves really well without the ball. He can be single-minded at times and only look for his own shot, but with some better coaching his game should adapt. 12 months ago I wouldn’t have doubted that Harrison Barnes would be a question mark, but he didn’t show any signs of improvement this past season. Kerr has to make sure that Barnes’ growth hasn’t been permanently stunted.

Steve Kerr will have his hands full trying to figure out what to do with the rest of the roster, which looks pretty thin no matter how hard you look at it. If the Warriors want to be like the Spurs then he has to figure out a way to get the most out of every single player on the roster. I’m optimistic about Kerr as a coach and about the Warriors as a contending team next year. If they can do a reasonable Spurs impression, they have a really good shot.

Author: Sonny Giuliano

When I was young my parents told me not to talk to strangers, but if you wanna chat or have a friendly debate about the NBA, then we can make an exception! Follow me on Twitter… it’s gonna be fun.

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