Golden State Warriors: The Issue of Jason Thompson

The Golden State Warriors have to figure out what to do with power forward Jason Thompson, who’s yet to find his niche in the rotation.

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For a few years prior to the 2015-16 NBA season, the Golden State Warriors were stuck with a dilemma, and his name was David Lee.

Lee, 32, was once a cornerstone for the Warriors franchise following a sign-and-trade deal with the New York Knicks. A double-double machine, Lee provided the team with roughly 20 points and 10 rebounds a game, giving the fans something new to believe in after “We Believe” had come to its unfortunate conclusion. He was a fan favorite for the five years he was in Golden State, acting as the team’s premier offensive presence in both the low post and in the pick-and-roll.

Ironically, Lee was also a constant target for opposing teams in both the low post and in the pick-and-roll on the defensive end. It was only after Lee befell a timely injury that the team was acquainted with the defensive abilities of Draymond Green, ultimately leading to Green replacing Lee as the starting power forward.

At that very moment, Lee’s post-prime fate was all but sealed. As great as it sounded having him providing instant offense off the bench, the fact of the matter was the financial burden of keeping him was far too overbearing in the long run, and the team needed to keep it’s title window as wide open as possible.

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After winning the NBA title and making basketball history with one of the best seasons ever statistically, one of the team’s top priorities became finding a new home for David Lee. The Boston Celtics ended up being the recipients of a deal for Lee, resulting in Gerald Wallace and Chris Babb finding themselves members of the Warriors. Wallace’s tenure with the Warriors was short-lived, however, as he was then flipped for Jason Thompson in a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers.

But in trying to solve a problem, the front office merely brought a new one to the forefront; put simply: there’s not many players in the NBA capable of backing up Draymond Green.

As important as Stephen Curry is to the Golden State Warriors, Shaun Livingston has continually proven himself a capable backup to the best point guard in the league. He could never replace what Curry does, nor does he try to replicate Curry’s style of play; instead, he provides the team with another high-IQ ball handler that does exactly what a point guard is supposed to do: control the tempo, run the offense, and find good opportunities for his teammates.

Similar things can be said about Leandro Barbosa and Andre Iguodala, who serve as backups to Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes, respectively. Barbosa is more of a slasher than a shooter, but he’s nonetheless counted on to score buckets. He couldn’t replace what Klay does, but his role remains similar: finish the play.

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As sixth man, Iguodala is arguably more important to the team dynamic than Barnes, providing the team with another high-level distributor and renowned perimeter defender; this differs from Barnes, who’s primarily called upon to be a finisher. While Barnes also plays a pivotal role at power forward in Golden State’s small ball lineups, Iguodala showed he was able to play power forward while Barnes was out with an ankle injury.

Festus Ezeli and Andrew Bogut are the only two players on the Warriors that serve the same purpose, playing as the Warriors’ predominant rim protectors; and yet, it’s Bogut’s passing ability and overall experience that sets him apart from his more athletic counterpart.

Draymond Green is the one player for which the front office has trouble finding a backup. Finding a prototypical power forward is easy, but Green’s most important role isn’t as the team’s starting power forward, but rather its small ball center.

On offense, Green is a jack of all trades, the swiss army knife of the basketball world. Having a 0.9 lead over Curry, Green leads the team in assists per game (7.3), which is a skill most welcome in Steve Kerr‘s fast paced system. Green is also having a career season from long range, shooting 42.1 percent from behind the arc to help space the floor for the Warriors. Combined with his defensive prowess and rebounding instincts, Green becomes the one thing Don Nelson was missing in his run-and-gun system, the key to the team’s small ball success.

In his first (and hopefully last) start of the season for the Warriors due to Green being rested, interim head coach Luke Walton summed up Jason Thompson’s career prior to their loss to the Denver Nuggets:

"“He’s played in this league for a long time and has started for most of his career,” Walton said. “You don’t ever try to be somebody you’re not, and you don’t ever try to do things that you’re not used to doing.”“He’s a good athlete, he sets screens and he can knock down mid-range jump shots, so we expect him to do those types of things.”"

Reading between the lines, the contrast between Thompson and Green is clear: Thompson is not the small ball center the Warriors need.

He’s quick, yes. He can score inside. He has a midrange shot. He’s not a particularly horrible rebounder. At 6-foot-11, his length and athleticism potentially could be utilized to make him a decent defender. He’s also not much of a passer, but there was hope that Golden State’s system would do the same for him like it did for Barbosa, Brandon Rush, and, for a while, Marreese Speights.

But there’s a reason why Speights and Thompson are at the bottom of the big man rotation this season, and that reason mostly has to do with the evolution of Draymond Green. Thompson unfortunately has more in common with Speights, in that neither of them have a problem being a scorer but lack much else. When you consider who they’re supposed to be backing up, there’s actually multiple reasons why they’ve come up short in filling the role of small ball center.

The thing that makes Green such an invaluable piece to the puzzle is the wide variety of skills he’s brings to the table, most especially his vision, his long range shooting ability, and his defense. Thompson unfortunately hasn’t shown any sign that he’s improved in either of those three areas, and with half the season already gone, there’s a chance he never will.

Although Lee never really improved a great deal defensively or added a three-point shot, his passing and natural pick-and-roll instincts were useful in a system that focused on moving the ball. The Warriors made it work by either mixing him in with a three-point shooter and/or providing him with some high-IQ cutters.

In the few minutes Thompson has seen on the floor this season — 133 over 19 games, to be exact — he’s mostly appeared as a lost cause in Golden State’s system, clogging the lane ineffectively and stopping the ball when it needs to be moving.

Even James Michael McAdoo, who’s played 147 minutes over 25 games, has had a better handle on what the Warriors are supposed to do offensively, remaining in constant motion around the paint as to give his teammates a cutter to target. He doesn’t have the midrange shot of which Thompson is supposed to be capable, but the energy he brings inside as a finisher, a rebounder and a defender remains promising.

But even then, some of the Warriors’ worst lineups have either Jason Thompson, Speights, or McAdoo attached to them, which only goes to show that neither of them are what Golden State needs as Green’s role continues to evolve. While it also may just be a result of Luke Walton’s coaching thus far in the season (taking into account some of the wacky bench lineups he’s put on the floor), Thompson just clearly doesn’t fit, and with a $6.8 million season to follow this year’s $6.4 million, it may be worth looking at some options before the Feb. 18 trade deadline.

The obvious problem is it’s doubtful a team would want Thompson in his current state. The other problem: passing big men are a tight commodity in the NBA, as are bigs who space the floor. Most of them are on big contracts untouchable by the Warriors, and others are in roles that are central to rebuilding teams. In order to trade Thompson, they’d have to package him with someone like say, Harrison Barnes.

With that said, it’s imperative that the Warriors find a way to better integrate Thompson into the system if they’re unable to make a deal for him at the deadline. If they can get Thompson’s offense to where it needs to be in the pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop, then the team will at least have the flexibility to make Speights and Thompson interchangeable moving forward.