Kerr pushing right buttons with revamped Warriors starting five originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SACRAMENTO – After mixing lineups for more than half of the Warriors’ games so far, coach Steve Kerr hopes he’s finally settled on one that he can use for the remainder of the season.
Re-inserting Brandin Podziemski into the starting five and moving Buddy Hield to the bench has produced the results that Kerr hoped for while giving legitimacy to the reasons why he made the changes.
Podziemski had his highest-scoring game in more than two months, dropping 21 points in the Warriors’ 132-108 romp over the Sacramento Kings on Friday. Hield had 22, tying Moses Moody for the team high.
“I imagine we’ll stay with this lineup, and I hope so because we’ve had a million different starting lineups this year,” Kerr told reporters at Golden 1 Center. “It’d be really nice to stick with this the rest of the season and keep building continuity with our lineups.”
Early in the season Kerr talked highly about the Warriors’ depth but finding a consistent, reliable starting five has been as tough a task that Golden State’s coach has had all season. The Warriors have used 33 different starting lineups through 56 games, second-most in the NBA behind the Philadelphia 76ers (34).
The latest iteration has Podziemski getting his reps with a starting five that includes Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green and Moses Moody. Four of those five – Green being the lone exception – scored 20 points or more.
It’s a smallish lineup – three of the five are 6-foot-5 or shorter – but one that Podziemski says makes up for in many other ways.
“What we lack in size is what we make up in IQ,” Podziemski told NBC Sports Bay Area. “What we lack in size we make up with skill. The players put there complement each other really well.”
Podziemski, who had 18 points against the Houston Rockets on Feb. 13 in his first game back as a starter, shot 9 of 20 (45 percent) but had five assists and looked a lot like the connector that Kerr has often referred to him as.
“I like the play-making and I like his ability to handle the ball and get Steph off the ball,” Kerr said. “BP and Jimmy also have a great connection. That became apparent right away. Starting them together means we get more minutes with them.”
Hield should be credited for making this work, too. Had he balked at the idea, it could have created a bigger mess.
Instead, he willingly accepted the move.
“I’m a basketball player and I’m a guy that whatever Steve needs me to do I’m gonna play my role to the best of my ability, whether it’s start or come off the bench,” Hield said. “I’ve done that my whole career in the NBA. You just have to accept the role, whatever the team needs me to do. Whether it’s 25 minutes, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, you accept the rolele. Once you’re able to accept, be be the best version of yourself in those roles that were presented to you, everything just tends to come to you.”
Getting a clear message from Kerr why the move was made enabled Hield to accept it more readily.
“I had a lot of coaches that don’t pass the information around to you,” Hield said. “Steve does a great job of letting us know before. He doesn’t come to us (in a) way it’s like hard feelings but just what’s best for the team.”
That was the exact reason Kerr gave for making the change in starting lineups.
“Buddy’s a huge part of what we’re doing,” Kerr said. “(The change) is not a reflection of his play. It’s just a reflection of what I’m trying to accomplish. Buddy’s always going to play a big role for us with his shooting. I just think it feels right to bring him off the bench as a sixth man and to start BP for his play-making and the connection that he brings to the game.”
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