We know, only Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are guaranteed to be starters when Warriors camp opens. For the other three places, everything is open, and as Steve Kerr explained on Tuesday, this allows him to “reinvent” himself. If Green is therefore guaranteed to start the meetings, an unknown remains: in what position?
“Draymond is going to start! » says Steve Kerr among the microphones. “I just don't know if it'll be like 4 or 5. Maybe I should have clarified that yesterday. Obviously, he will start, but I don't know where, on the 4th or 5th… We have to find out at the end of the camp. Kevon has improved and is playing really well, and Trayce has improved.”
Pivot? Yes, but not for too long…
That Green plays pivot is nothing new. We remember that he was an essential element of the Warriors' “death five” and he always occupied this position in sequences, more or less long. The question is whether he will start in this position.
“In the past, we really wanted to play Draymond 10 or 12 minutes per game [à ce poste] » ,continues Kerr. “But it was more during the first half of our journey, from 2015 to 2019. It was pretty consistent. I usually had someone else play. Last year we played him as a center. I think it's more feasible now, since the league plays faster and there are more 3-point shots. But there's still a part of me that says: '82 games with Draymond at center…' There are also teams that play with more size now. I don't like the idea of Draymond being in the starting five and playing a lot of minutes at center game after game. »
An Anderson-Green pair to start?
Clearly, Kerr has not yet decided, and he is especially afraid of wearing Green out by dealing with bigger and heavier opponents. What does the person concerned think?
“I'm really good next to a center. I'm OK in that position, but I think I'm really good next to a center.” replies the interior All-Star. “I think having that option is huge. And then if I'm at the pivot, we have a guy like [Kyle Anderson]who can do a bit of the same thing as me if not more…. If he is at position 4, then I can play the pivot role because I know how to play that position. »
At the end of the season, Steve Kerr opted for the Jackson-Davis option as a pivot, and it worked very well: 9 wins for 2 losses, and the 5th best defense over this period.
