Much has been made of the league-leading Golden State Warriors offense (1st in points per game at 110.6). The "Splash Brothers" proficiency on that end of the court and their perimeter attack (2nd in the NBA in 3PM and 3P%) is great, but my focus here is on how their defense complements their offense and has as much to do with their success, and maybe more, as what they are doing on the offensive end. A number of Vantage Stat categories show how the Warriors are able to play defensively, utilizing the personnel they have, to pressure, disrupt, and force teams into the Warriors' pace. Through their defense, they generate offense. Golden State leads the NBA in Overall FG% Against for all shots defended, forcing opponents to shoot a league-low 41.77 percent. With their group of interchangeable perimeter defenders (Curry, Thompson, Barnes, Iguodaloa, Green, and Livingston), they are able to come at teams in waves throughout games. They have worn opponents down with on-ball defensive pressure, excellent closeout skills (league-low Closeout Points Allowed of .09), and switching on screens without creating mismatches. Looking closely at the Vantage Stats, we see that the Warriors switch on defense at the second-highest rate in the league (18.59 percent). Because of their size, length, athleticism, and experience, they have found great success utilizing this scheme. The team with the highest overall Switch%, the Philadelphia 76ers, does not have all of these intangibles and, thus, is not as effective in their execution (although they still rank 5th in Points Allowed per Shot). As the Warriors get caught in switches, one of the concerns is always about getting beat on closeouts and giving up dribble penetration. They currently give up a league-low .09 points per closeout opportunity (aka Closeout Points Allowed). This is crucial in a league that is focused on finding and exploiting mismatches. The Warriors are also able to disrupt passing lanes and execute their help-side principles, which means that potential mismatches are not what they seem against this kind of execution. Another result of these defensive principles is the ability of the Warriors as a team to force turnovers. Ranking 4th in Turnovers Forced per Chance at 0.13, the "Splash Brothers" and company are able to get out quickly in transition where they flourish on offense. Again, their switching ability, especially on the perimeter, allows them to jump passing lanes, closeout quickly, stunt down on the post, and remain in blockout responsibilities. All this enables them to play at a faster pace. They use their depth to employ the same pressure and principles throughout each game and attack teams both offensively and defensively. As individuals, most of the Warrior players are enjoying career years in this uptempo system. Two prime examples: (1) Draymond Green's showcasing his ability to guard up and down the opposing lineup using his quickness, size, and strength to win most individual matchups. He also does a great job of understanding his help responsibilities and responding correctly. (2) Klay Thompson's proven ability as a "two-way player," taking on tough matchups and winning most of his battles. When he and Steph Curry get back on defense, it does not matter whom they pick up, which makes their transition defense much tougher to exploit (they also have the third-best Beat Back on D Rate in the league). Most successful teams will have great synergies between their offensive and their defensive philosophies. If you are an uptempo team on offense, looking to increase total possessions as the Warriors do, then it is natural to have a defensive system that plays to your players' athleticisim and abilities. With the interchangeable players that the Warriors employ, they are able to play on defense just as fast as they play on offense. It helps to create a culture of how you want to play, and the Warriors have created that mindset by having their philosophies in sync. http://www.vantagesports.com/#story...le-players-enable-the-gsw-defense-to-flourish
Yeah, I thought so, too. I love the type of basketball their incorporating up there in GSW. The defense specifically is what has me intrigued, and I think would be great for the Lakers to model after...big guards/wings that could switch and guard positions 1-4 (Green being the one who could guard the 4 and others guarding postions 1-3) is something that I would like to see implemented. That's my main reason for upgrading Cauley-Stein on my draft list; not only to protect the rim, but guarding the perimeter which allows so much versatility.
