NBA: Boston Celtics at Golden State Warriors

By: Yama Hazheer

Whether you like to admit it or not, Andrew Bogut’s injury risk is a constant thought in your mind when you think of the Warriors playing in the postseason. Last season’s nightmare Game 7 loss in Los Angeles to Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and the Clippers still haunts you today. A 42-9 record is beyond remarkable, but the regular season doesn’t necessarily indicate how well the team will play in the postseason.

-== Top 7 Point Guards in Warriors History ==-

The Warriors have looked sluggish at best as of late. The team has struggled starting games the past few weeks. Although most of them have still resulted in wins, the Warriors have not looked as good as they did to start the season. Luckily, they have climbed far ahead enough to hold a few game lead in the playoff picture over the other teams in the West.

Lackluster performances against the Knicks, 76ers, and Timberwolves can be a cause for concern, but it could also just be a team who is exhausted and should be thrilled the All-Star break is finally here for them. Normally, a win is a win and there is not much room to worry over a win. But with the way Golden State has been blowing teams out all season, you would expect better performances against some of the lower end teams in the league.NBA: Golden State Warriors at Minnesota Timberwolves

Bogut’s desire has come to question and people are wondering if he really is the X-Factor for this Dubs team. Take a look at the other big men on the Warriors roster and you’ll have your answer.

Marreese Speights has had a dream season for his standards. After coming into training camp overweight last season, he left the team disappointed in what they originally expected when they signed him to a contract. Speights looked lazy, unmotivated, and like a player who did not belong on a team with championship aspirations. He turned it around this year and is now in the running for the 6th Man of the Year award. However, his defense is average at best. He might be able to score with some of the better power forwards in the league at times when he is hot, but he cannot stop them. At all.

The former All-Star, David Lee, has had an inferior season at best. He shows flashes of improved defense thanks to the help of Ron Adams, but makes too many mistakes to be considered anything better than an average defender. Lee is a good passer and has experience, but does not offer much at this stage of his career for the Warriors. He is unable score like he used to, he doesn’t rebound the way he was capable of, and his once reliable jumper looks all but that. He disappeared against the Clippers in last season’s playoff series with no Bogut by his side as Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan made him look like a boy among men.

After playing 78 games his rookie season, Festus Ezeli sat out his whole sophomore year due to injury and has had lingering injuries this season despite playing a few games. He gets more credit than he deserves on the defensive side of the ball. He only plays 11 and a half minutes per game yet fouls 2.3 times. It’s also a bad sign when your center averages more turnovers than blocked shots. Ezeli turns the ball over 1.1 times but only blocks .8 shots per game. His offensive game is still raw and the team cannot run the offense through him like they can with Bogut and even sometimes, Lee.

Draymond Green is the only “big” on the team that is extremely capable of showing up every night and getting the job done. The only issue is that he is 6’7. He plays exceptionally better when Bogut plays. Green struggled earlier in the season when Bogut was injured. He isn’t asked to do as much on the defensive end of the ball and gets better shots offensively when Bogut is on the court. He went on one his biggest slumps of the season earlier in the year when Bogut had knee issues.NBA: Houston Rockets at Golden State Warriors

Bogut is first in the NBA in defensive box plus/minus at +6.6 He also leads the NBA with with a 93.7 defensive rating and is also first in net rating at 17.3. He is also 15th in the league in block percentage at nearly six percent. His rim protection is top notch and something that will be needed desperately in the postseason when teams try to slow the game pace down and run slower half-court offensive sets.

The biggest question of the Warriors season last year: how far could they have gone if Andrew Bogut was healthy? Hopefully this season, that question will be put to rest. Don’t let a few injuries turn you away from Bogut. He is still the most valuable player on the team behind Stephen Curry. He will be needed for the long haul in a crucial postseason for the Warriors. This could be the year the team has been waiting for since the 70s. Bogut just has to remain healthy. Curry is the MVP, Klay Thompson is the second best player, Draymond Green is the heartbeat, but Andrew Bogut remains the X-Factor.

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3 Responses

  1. scotmac

    You made some good points, but i think you were unfair to David Lee. Yes, his defense will probably never be great. However, he did not disappear against the clippers. He was being asked to play center, and he is obviously not a center. That said, other than the blowout in game 2, he never had a negative +/- and out of the players that played more than 100 total minutes in the series, he was 2nd in points per minute, and he LED the team in rebounds.

  2. ds207

    Still would like to see a better alternative to backup Bogut besides Ezelli,who can go down to injury anytime soon. Defensive presence is a must in the playoffs, and Speights and Lee just do not offer enough inside. Low post scoring is still a weakness for the Dubs and it really has shown lately when the legs get tired and the threes from Curry and Klay stop falling.

  3. Charlie Siebenthal

    Bogut is playing the fewest minutes by far of the five starters. Each time he comes out of the game he looks exhausted. Is there a physical problem which has not been reported ? Or is Kerr simply trying to keep him healthy for the playoffs ? If he is simply getting tired, he needs conditioning work which he will not get sitting on the bench. However playing when your body is tired exposes you to injury. Quite a problem for the coach.