Golden State Warriors Power Rankings: Gauging Full Roster After First 6 Weeks

The Golden State Warriors have dominated the first six weeks of the NBA season, leaving no doubt that management made the right decision to hire Steve Kerr. The offense is flowing, with spacing creating open shots and even more opportunities, but the defense is standing even stronger.

The Splash Brothers (Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson) have evolved even more from last season, and Draymond Green has shown that he is a legitimate starter after replacing the injured David Lee. Harrison Barnes has also re-emerged after switching back to the starter's role he's more comfortable playing.

As for the big men on the court, Andrew Bogut is succeeding but is now the elixir on the offensive end as he facilitates the movement of the ball. Marreese Speights has been the biggest surprise, as he has been very efficient when he is on the court.

The Warriors as a team have stayed near the top of the Association in the power rankings, but let’s take a look at them on an individual level.

Nos. 14-11

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Brandon Rush is trying to get back to his successful Warriors' days.

14. Justin Holiday

Justin Holiday has not seen the court enough to be a factor yet this season. In his best interests, he needs to bounce back and forth between the NBA team and the Santa Cruz Warriors of the D-League to work on his shooting and adapt to the style of Kerr’s offense.

13. Ognjen Kuzmic

Ognjen Kuzmic has played in only six games so far this season and has only made one shot. As with Holiday, he could benefit from more playing time in Santa Cruz.

12. Brandon Rush

Brandon Rush is still trying to make a triumphant return to the team where he had success in his previous run. He is fighting hard to find significant minutes behind Klay Thompson and Leandro Barbosa.

11. Festus Ezeli

Festus Ezeli made a strong contribution to the Warriors during his rookie season (2012-13), when he played a lot of minutes filling in for the injured Bogut. He was set for the backup role this season, but Marreese Speights' play has serverly limited Ezeli's minutes. 

Ezeli will need to continue to develop his offensive game so he can be a reliable option for Kerr, whether it is for defensive purposes or when Bogut needs a breather.

10. David Lee

David Lee falls so far down this list because of the hamstring injury that has limited his playing time to only seven minutes through the first 17 games of the season. Thus, he receives an incomplete.

When healthy, Lee has great offensive abilities and is a willing glass-cleaner. He should improve the second unit in a similar role that Bogut plays with the first team.

Last season, the former All-Star averaged 18.2 points and 9.3 boards. He won’t get as many minutes when he takes the new position but should have more favorable matchups against mostly bench players.

He is the final piece of Kerr’s puzzle. If Lee can coexist in a lineup of Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston and Speights, the Warriors will become true title contenders.   

9. Shaun Livingston

Shaun Livingston has had a tough go of it so far this season. He fought off a toe injury to return in time for the season opener.

He is the backup point guard to all-everything Stephen Curry, so he doesn’t get as much playing time or notoriety as he did in Brooklyn last season.

Livingston is becoming more acclimated to the Kerr offense, as he has played more than 20 minutes in two of the past four contests through December 3. He also put up double figures in both of those games.

Fans can expect Livingston to be more involved in the game plan, especially to give Curry some rest and to run the team in blowout games.

8. Leandro Barbosa

Leandro Barbosa took to his nickname, “The Brazilian Blur,” as he started off with a bang in his first six games with the Warriors. However, he has cooled off since the 113-100 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on November 11.

He also sprained his right knee in the 91-86 win against the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 23 and did not return to his regular rotation until the 104-93 win against the Detroit Pistons on November 30.

He is a useful playmaker who knows how to cut and move. His averages through December 3 are 6.1 PPG, 1.5 RPG and 1.3 APG, but he should increase his productivity when David Lee is installed as the facilitator of the second unit.

He also used his basketball IQ to help position Bogut during the crucial last-second inbounds play in the 98-97 win over the Orlando Magic on December 2.

7. Andre Iguodala

Andre Iguodala has had a tough adjustment to make after starting every game of his career until this season. Kerr chose him to be the leader of the second unit because Iguodala is a point forward and could be more versatile than the rest of the reserves.

His averages have definitely slipped with the move, but he is slowly emerging to his old form. He is currently putting up a line of 6.8 PPG, 3.0 RPG and 2.4 APG, which is significantly lower than his career averages of 14.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG and 4.8 APG.

The numbers are meaningful, but the intangibles really represent his value. He should be even more of an impact player with Lee by his side.

Yes, Iguodala didn’t initially like the move, but he is a selfless guy who makes the team better with the adjustment. He is dangerous in transition, with his ability to draw defenders toward him and dish it off to an open teammate.

His defense also shines bright, as he is called in to shut down opponents’ key offensive weapons. He is a skilled weapon that Kerr will use as needed.

6. Harrison Barnes

The beneficiary of Iguodala's move to the reserve role is Harrison Barnes. Barnes was a shadow of himself last season and almost disappeared playing off the bench.

This year, he has enjoyed the return to his old surroundings by playing a well-balanced game. His scoring and rebound numbers of 11.6 PPG and 6.7 RPG are proof of the improvement. 

It is pretty hard to think that through 17 games, Barnes would be outrebounding LeBron James on a per-game basis.

Barnes was particularly known for his athletic dunks but this season has been a consistent shooter all around the court, including from behind the arc, per Vorped.com.

Barnes' athleticism helps him succeed in the new Kerr offense, but he has a better feel for the court and how to find open spots to receive passes from Bogut or Curry.

With his early success, Barnes has the ability to grow into the player the Warriors’ brass imagined.

5. Marreese Speights

Marreese Speights is a scoring machine. The reserve forward-center is averaging a career-high 12.4 PPG in only 15.8 minutes per contest.

Per Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle,  Kerr said, Speights is "my new favorite player. He’s amazing. He just keeps producing every time we throw him out there. ... The production he has given us is remarkable, and he’s earned that backup role. He’s going to play a lot for us.”

Speights is definitely making Warriors fans forget about last season, when he came into training camp out of shape and didn’t produce at a sufficient level. He has carried this team in certain games, especially with his 28 points in the 91-86 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 23, when the Splash Brothers were off their games.

With a comfortable and foraging Speights, Kerr has even more tools to use to close games out.

4. Draymond Green

Successful teams need players who will do whatever it takes to win games, and Draymond Green is that guy. He was pushed into duty as the starting power forward this year because of the hamstring injury to David Lee.

There was already a debate as to whether or not Green should start before the injury occurred, but he is making the most out of the opportunity.

The undersized big is averaging career highs of 12.4 PPG, 7.2 RPG and 3.1 APG. He is also playing the necessary part of the stretch 4 that Kerr so highly desired.

The meteoric rise of Green doesn’t intimidate Green. As he told the San Jose Mercury News’ Diamond Leung, "I don't believe in a ceiling. I believe in a work ethic."

Green has an immense basketball IQ and does all of the little things, whether or not he gets credit. In the 98-97 win over the Orlando Magic on December 2, Green was the one who positioned himself to get the steal to close out the victory. 

Per Simmons, Kerr likes what he sees so far from Green: “I love Draymond. He’s fantastic. He’s a winner. We love what he does for our team. In a lot of ways, he’s our heart and soul. He plays with such passion at both ends, and I think it’s contagious.”

Whether or not Green continues his hot streak, he will be integral to the chemistry of this team.

3. Andrew Bogut

Andrew Bogut is showing why he was the No. 1 pick in the 2005 NBA draft, as he is now dominating on both sides of the court.

He is the facilitator of the new Kerr offense and is impressively using his passing skills to find open teammates. In the 101-88 win versus the Utah Jazz on November 21, Bogut tossed a behind-the-back pass to Curry then streaked to the hoop for the alley-oop.

Bogut’s assist totals have risen, as he is doling out a career-high 3.2 dimes per game. His scoring average isn’t topping the figures he put up before the arm injury in 2010, but he is very comfortable scoring when needed.

He is still his normal feisty self on the defensive end, where he routinely makes defenders pay for trying to infiltrate his area. He currently has the top defensive rating in the Association, per Basketball-Reference.

Going into the December 4 game versus the New Orleans Pelicans, he put up back-to-back games with five blocks.

As complete of a player that Bogut is, the lasting legacy so far this season has to be the effort put into defending the inbounds pass during the 98-97 win over the Orlando Magic on December 2. That play closed out a hard-fought game and helped extend the 10-game win streak.

2. Klay Thompson

Klay Thompson is currently justifying the decision to hold off on the Kevin Love trade that was discussed this summer. Thompson is making a serious case for earning a gig at this season’s All-Star game.

He is an elite three-point shooter, can create and finish and is a lockdown defender. One of his biggest statistical jumps is the number of times he goes to the charity stripe, up to 4.1 from 2.3 last season.

He got off to a blazing start to the season by being the season’s first NBA Western Conference Player of the Week. Since that time, he has cooled off marginally but is still putting up a career-high line of 20.9 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 3.3 APG.

Oh, and by the way, he snagged a 4-year, $70 million extension to stay in the Bay.

Thompson leads the NBA in the plus/minus category.

His team has scored 261 more points than opponents so far this season when he is on the floor, which translates to 16.3-point differential per game.

He will look to continue his climb up the ladder as the season progresses.

1. Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry is having a monster season so far this year, as he has already won two NBA awards: He picked up the NBA Western Conference Player of the Week in the second week of the season and just earned the Western Conference Player of the Month for November.

He also hit the game-winning three to help the Warriors extend their winning streak to 10 games.

He is still the slick guard who can do everything, but this season he has added defensive focus. He is not at a Thompson or Iguodala level but is making a steady improvement.

He is also making a concerted effort to lower his turnovers. He has a bet with his mother, Sonya, that if he commits more than two turnovers, he owes her money.

Curry’s current line of 23.7 PPG, 5.2 RPG and 7.6 APG is similar to last season, but he is more in command of his game with the new Kerr offense and is shooting at a higher field-goal percentage partially because of better spacing.

Besides leading the league in three-point shots made, Curry also leads in box plus/minus and value over replacement player (VORP), per Basketball-Reference.

Curry is taking his play to another plateau this season; we will see if he turns into a legitimate MVP candidate. 

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