Running more ball screens with Andrew Bogut at the elbow is one thing, but altering a winning philosophy to win when things don’t splash right is another. In particular, two games off this recent road trip against the depleted Oklahoma City Thunder and the largely disappointing Charlotte Hornets. Once again, two games that this team, on paper, should’ve won going away, but the powers at hand having a different idea.
In Oklahoma City, the Thunder were missing their two superstars, but Chesapeake Energy Arena has historically been a house of horrors for this team. Something had to give, and that something was Marreese Speights, who has found an incredible groove so far this season and carried the team that night with 28 points in 25 minutes off the bench. He outscored every Thunder starter, and for the first time this season the Warriors earned a win they would’ve lost last season.
“It was the best win of the year,” Kerr said after the game. “It was the ugliest game, but the best win.”
Five days later, the team trotted into Curry’s hometown boasting a seven-game winning streak and playing a team they thumped 
by 25 points just days before. Brian Roberts couldn’t miss and Al Jefferson feasted down low, but the Warriors scrapped their way to a five-point win. Curry and Thompson were a combined 16-of-42 from the field, but Speights once again led the way with 27 points and earning himself a new nickname in the process.
While the aura of Mo Speights is unflappable, Kerr has established a new structure that allows his players to succeed without the stars performing at a high level. Whether it’s inserting Harrison Barnes into the starting lineup, promoting Speights to first big off the bench or finding minutes for Leandro Barbosa, he’s pushed all the right buttons through the early part of the season.
The teams they played were in no way elite, but this recent roadie was a great indication of how much this team has grown in a little over a month since the season began. As we’ve heard before, it’s a process, but there are already improvements in key areas over last season, which, in a ridiculously dominant Western Conference, can make a huge difference in the final standings.
“I knew coming in that I was getting a really skilled team,” Kerr said after the team’s 104-93 win over the Pistons. “I also anticipated a very coachable group, just with speaking with Bob and watching them from afar. It’s a group of really good guys who want to win and want to play together and want to do the right thing.”
Right now, the Warriors are doing all the right things.