Golden State Warriors: Road to the Playoffs

November 05, 2012; Sacramento, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors center Andrew Bogut (12) between plays against the Sacramento Kings during the fourth quarter at Sleep Train Arena. The Sacramento Kings defeated the Golden State Warriors 94-92. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-US PRESSWIRE

The Golden State Warriors are currently first place in the Western Conference Pacific Division and have gave fans plenty of reason to remain optimistic about their team.

Despite the 94-92 tough loss to a struggling Sacramento Kings squad, the Warriors continue to impress me. They are 2-2 right now and will continue to get better and better as their franchise center Andrew Bogut steadily recovers from a painful ankle injury. At first the team said Bogut would not play on his surgically repaired ankle until it was 100 percent; but now he’s playing 20 minutes per game while it is clearly not.

“I have a lot more work to do to get to a level where I play 40 minutes,” Andrew Bogut said after racking 12 points in 19 minutes in Monday’s loss at Sacramento. “Conditioning wise, I don’t feel too bad. That’s getting better every game. But the ankle is still a work in progress.”

Andrew Bogut has given us flashes of how dominant he can be. We’ve seen his great talent in Milwaukee, and the Warriors have lacked a productive big who can dominant the paint for a while. He’s a phenomenal shot blocker. He can time when to block a shot nearly perfectly. He can crash the boards extremely well, and has shown us he has some nifty post moves.

On the other hand, the Warriors’ back court is incredibly talented. It’s a very young back court, with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson as the starting guards. The starting point guard Stephen Curry has constantly battled injuries throughout his career, but is a weapon when he’s on the floor. He has the ability to see the court very well, he can be an assassin from the perimeter, and is beginning to play the 2 guard as well as the 1 which only makes him more versatile and ultimately a better player. Curry just recently signed a 44 million dollar contract over four years and has high expectations from his fans and his team. He is averaging 16.5 points and 5.5 assists a night so far through four games. He’s shown that he can be a streaky shooter, but when he has it going he can be a nightmare for the opposition.

Klay Thompson, the starting off guard, is having a good start to his season and has established himself as one of the best players on this basketball team. The Warriors went to Thompson for the walk-off shot that he failed to convert on. He had a nice look and took a good distant shot at the right elbow. Coach Mark Jackson said that Thompson practiced that same shot 25 times at practice and made 24 of them. He is a bigger sized 2 guard at 6-foot-7 and has a sweet stroke from anywhere on the floor. He is becoming a better perimeter defender as well and has a very bright future for himself. Thompson is averaging 16.5 points per game along with 6.5 rebounds a night.

The power forward position has been nothing but productive for the Golden State Warriors. David Lee, the starting PF, is coming off a fantastic season and is giving the Dubs 12 points and 8 rebounds a night. He is a spot up shooter and has some crafty post moves to go along with his game. His best skill is rebounding, and expect his RPG to go up to around 9/10 boards a game. His backup Carl Landry has been outstanding off the bench. If the season were to end right now, he would be the MVP. He brings a tun of energy off the bench and if he continues to be as productive as he’s been, he will most definitely be a top candidate for Sixth Man of the Year. Landry is averaging 16.5 points and 7 rebounds and has made some clutch shots down the stretch.

My favorite part about the Golden State Warriors is without a question their depth. It is nearly impossible to be a good team in this league without good bench play, even if you have a superstar on the team. Depth is key in every sport, however I think it plays a more significant role with basketball. You just gotta love this team’s depth, with guys like Jarret Jack, Carl Landry, Festus Ezeli, Richard Jefferson, Charles Jenkins, and even Draymond Green coming off the bench. The loss of Brandon Rush for the season due to a torn ACL is a tough pill to swallow, however their depth can overcome a loss like this. Rush is great and has been a tremendous pickup since last year, but the Warriors should manage to win without him.

If coach Mark Jackson continues to manage this team correctly and puts his guys in the best position to win games, this could be a playoff team. Once Andrew Bogut can consistently give the Warriors 30-40 minutes a night, they will improve significantly. I’m looking forward to watch the rest of this season and hope the best for the Golden State Warriors.