Report Card Grades for Golden State Warriors' 2014 Offseason So Far
The Golden State Warriors entered the offseason looking to swing for the fences, and whilst they have yet to knock one out of the park, their small-ball approach has yielded some promising returns.
As the Warriors have come to realize, the ascent to greatness comes at a price, one that might be too steep for them to pay. The bounty to acquire Kevin Love has been set, and the Warriors’ unwillingness to part ways with Klay Thompson may ultimately lead to Love slipping through their fingers.
Still, there’s always a Plan B, and the Warriors have made sure that even though they didn’t upgrade at the power forward position, they will enter the season with few holes on their roster.
Whether it was finding a new captain to steer the ship or finding the right crew members to make it go, the Warriors rose to the challenge and assembled what looks to be an upgraded version of the squad they sent out last season.
What remains to be seen, however, is whether those moves were enough to make up the considerable gap that existed between them and the Western Conference elite.
Brandon Rush
1 of 5
The Warriors signed Brandon Rush to a two-year contract worth $2.5 million on Wednesday after he impressed in a Las Vegas workout, courtesy of Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Despite tearing both his ACL and MCL under the Warriors’ own watch in 2012-13, they saw enough to give him a second chance.
It was a brilliant signing on their part.
It’s not about the money, although at the price they signed him, he is one of the best bargains in all of basketball. It’s what they know he brings to the table, something they were in short supply of last season—reliability off the bench.
After Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, the guard rotation in Golden State was a disaster throughout the season. Toney Douglas couldn’t shoulder the load to start the year and the in-season acquisitions of Steve Blake and Jordan Crawford did little to rectify their problems. Blake’s steady hand was too mild and Crawford’s scoring was far too inconsistent.
More importantly, however, neither one of them qualified as plus defenders.
That’s where Rush comes in. At 6’6”, Rush has the length to bother opposing players, along with the quickness to stay in front of them. Paired with ace defenders like Andre Iguodala and Andrew Bogut, he will wreak havoc on the defensive end.
On offense, Rush has proven to be an elite three-point specialist, shooting it at 41 percent for his career. For an offense that has been historically predicated on bombing from outside, he’s a natural fit.
While he isn’t the type of signing that instantly boosts the Warriors into contender status, he is a very useful piece off the bench that brings more to the table than anyone they previously had.
Grade: B
Shaun Livingston
2 of 5
This is the best move of the offseason for the Warriors so far. Finding a capable backup for Stephen Curry was the biggest need for the Warriors and they got the best one on the market in Shaun Livingston.
Livingston is a seasoned veteran who in the past has proven Murphy’s Law to be correct. After a gruesome knee injury in 2007 nearly ended his career, Livingston bounced back but failed to find a consistent role on a team. That’s when the Brooklyn Nets came calling and everything fell into place.
As the season progressed, Livingston moved from a bench role to the starting lineup, filling in when Deron Williams was hurt and ultimately playing alongside of him when he returned. It wasn’t just that he played with Williams, however. It was that he was routinely outplaying him as well.
His averages last season won’t jump off the page at you—8.3 points, 3.2 assists, 3.2 rebounds—but his impact was undeniable. He picked up the slack defensively for Williams and provided a steady hand on offense, allowing Williams the chance to play off the ball more than he ever has.
Livingston fits perfectly on the Warriors because his size and abilities allow him to be a competent backup for either Curry or Thompson. Should Curry exit the game, Livingston slides into the point guard slot. Should Thompson find himself on the sidelines, Curry would simply move over to shooting guard and allow Livingston to run the offense.
Defensively, he will terrorize smaller guards with his length and fit in seamlessly with an elite wing rotation. Any lineup that features some combination of Thompson, Iguodala, Rush and himself would be one of the stingiest in the league.
The one flaw here is that Livingston is a below average shooter from deep, a rarity coming out of the Golden State backcourt. Still, as Devin Kharpertian of The Brooklyn Game explains here, Livingston always finds a way to contribute:
"Shaun Livingston's finally fitting in.
Eight years ago, Shaun Livingston was a budding superstar, a No. 4 overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft criticized for not utilizing his full potential to dominate games.
But in 2014, Livingston has thrived in Brooklyn as a "glue guy," standing out in the background, creating opportunities for teammates by taking subtle responsibilities and finding open spaces.
"
The Warriors have more than enough shooting to compensate for Livingston and the positives he brings far outweigh the negatives. The one thing that brings this grade down a bit is that the Warriors were unable to complete a sign-and-trade before their traded-player exception expired last week.
At $9.8 million, that would have gone a long way in strengthening the team even more. Instead, the Warriors used their full mid-level exception and signed him to a three-year, $16 million deal. While he is surely worth the money, it’s an unnecessary cap hit that could have been avoided.
Grade: B+
Steve Kerr
3 of 5
This is where it gets tricky. There is no true way to evaluate the Steve Kerr signing because we really have no track record in which to judge him. This will be Kerr’s first stint as a head coach in the NBA.
What we can look at, however, is the scope of Kerr’s career. As a player, Kerr had the luxury of playing under two giants of the game in Phil Jackson and Gregg Popovich. He’s seen firsthand the way they prepare and the systems they implemented. He also played with two of the all-time greats in Michael Jordan and Tim Duncan, two superstars who couldn’t have been more different.
All of the perspective that Kerr gained as a player makes him an ideal candidate to not just lead his players, but manage their egos as well. For a locker room that is still recovering from the firing of Mark Jackson, that will be a very important trait. Gaining the trust from his players should be no problem for the guy that famously earned the trust from Jordan himself.
Kerr has also spent plenty of time working as an analyst for TNT, a role in which he thrived. The unique insight that he offered there is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of his knowledge. He is the anti Jackson in this regard. Whereas Jackson was a supreme motivator with little grasp of the X's and O's, Kerr’s understanding of the game should help instill a system that gets the most out of his players.
The frustrating late-game offense of the Jackson days should finally be behind them.
Between stints as an analyst, Kerr tried his hand in the front office when he served as the president and general manager of the Phoenix Suns. While his time there was unmemorable, he did play a role in numerous big-name trades and showed a willingness to go outside the box to win.
The only thing left to do now for Kerr is achieve success as a head coach, something the Warriors’ management is banking on. While Jackson had his shortcomings, he did have the support of his players and coached the Warriors to their first 50-win season in 20 years and back-to-back trips to the postseason.
The pressure on Kerr will be immense to not just keep up the level of success that Jackson instilled, but to raise the bar ever more. Until we see him a little more, the Warriors will receive an incomplete for this signing.
Grade: IC
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Not Trading for Kevin Love
4 of 5
Kevin Love should be a Warrior by now. No ifs, ands or buts about it.
The Warriors and the Minnesota Timberwolves have been in discussions for seemingly an eternity now about the prospects of Love joining the Warriors this coming season. Alas, they have failed to come to an agreement because the services of Klay Thompson continues to be a sticking point.
What a ludicrous thought.
Look, Thompson is a good player, maybe even one day a great one. But Love is a bona fide superstar, and at age 25, his best years are still ahead of him. Guys like that don’t just grow on trees.
It’s true that the Warriors had leverage in the negotiations, especially when the rest of his potential suitors chose to not trade their valuable draft picks. That leverage has disappeared, though, especially with the Cleveland Cavaliers now willing to include the No. 1 overall draft pick Andrew Wiggins into their trade package, via Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today.
Now, the Warriors very well may have missed out on one of the true prizes of an offseason loaded with them. They overrated Thompson, a man who one day might blossom into an All Star, and passed on Love, a top-10 player with the potential to be a perennial All-NBA candidate, especially with Curry by his side.
It’s still not too late for the Warriors to correct this misstep, as likely all they’d have to do is reverse their stance on Thompson to make the trade happen. Should this be the case, their grade will rightfully be adjusted. For now, however, a passing grade is not in their cards.
Grade: F
Overall Grade
5 of 5
The Kevin Love debacle aside, it’s been a very promising offseason for the Warriors so far with the slim chance of it improving dramatically.
The signings of Livingston and Rush tied up the biggest loose end the Warriors had on their roster. Both men bring veteran leadership and defense, and each can contribute on the offensive end.
Until proven otherwise, Kerr must be given the benefit of the doubt based on his track record. He’s proven to have a brilliant basketball mind and has always shown the ability to know his role on any specific team. Whether that translates to the sidelines is yet to be determined.
The Warriors entered the offseason with a roster that could compete with anyone but probably wasn’t good enough to topple the elite teams in the West. Despite their signings, they’ll find themselves in the same predicament next season. Their roster is deep, but not championship material yet.
Had they added Love, they would have been among the favorites to win it all. Without him, they’ll find that the second round of the playoffs is likely their ceiling.
Overall Grade: B-
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.jpg?w=600 "Offseason Moves for Every Team 👉")