Golden State Warriors All post-’90 team write up:
First, a quick caveat. I took over management of the Golden State Warriors a little late in the game, which put me at two slight disadvantages. First, my first round pick had been skipped. I mention this because, though incredibly pleased with Karl Malone anchoring our team at the PF spot, some would question why we drafted him ahead of a PF as historically great as Duncan. Well, we didn’t; Duncan was gone by the time transition of team ownership became official (i.e. I was invited as a replacement owner). Second, due to the quick takeover, it wasn’t until the morning of the third round that I was informed that the cutoff for qualification was ’89-’90, not ‘90-’91 as originally believed. I’m not sure it would have made a huge difference, because we at Golden State appreciate Mourning’s fierce attitude and competitiveness more than Ewing’s, but we were comparing Mourning to Ewing’s ’90-’91 season, not his ’89-’90 season, which was quite statistically excellent. In retrospect, it would have been hard to pass on Ewing’s ’89-’90 season, but even so, we are incredibly pleased with Mourning anchoring the Center spot.
From that point on, once we settled in, I feel like our draft was a tremendous success. We drafted with the following strategies in mind:
1. In a draft this deep, we could not afford to draft players with obvious holes in their games, be it known attitude issues, selfishness, matador defense, etc. Our philosophy was that in a draft this deep, instead of targeting one-dimensional specialists, you could target players who were basically as good as a specialist at that skill AND didn’t have the holes in their game.
2. We went for high character players with a demonstrable history of wanting to win. Part of this relates to point number one in that such players are likely to buy into a reduced role, and by so doing, probably be as good at their new niche role as are current specialists. For example, someone like Eddie House is a great 3 point shooter. But he has a lot of holes in his game. And he really just has to shoot open jump shots. Contrast to someone like Chris Mullin, who shot a high percentage while being a primary handler/creator/target of opposing defenses. We know from his time on the original Dream Team that Mullin can buy into an elite team concept; imagine his 3 point percentage if he were actually benefiting from OTHER people getting double teamed for a whole season instead of shooting threes WHILE being double teamed.
3. Defense. It matters. So we went out of our way to make sure we had players recognized on all-defense teams sprinkled throughout the rotation (but were NOT exclusively defensive specialists, so our offense doesn't have to suffer to have good defensive play) and targeted a coach known for a. great defensive coaching; b. Championship pedigree; and c. successfully coaching the most egalitarian team of this generation.
4. Fit. Skills needed to fit with an offensive/defensive flow in mind. So no one dimensional players, not all slashers or all exclusively long-range bombers, etc.
5. Efficiency. With this many great players, you can’t waste shots. High volume-low percentage players were avoided, especially if they were high volume-low percentage players known more for their offense than defense.
6. Reality. The reality is that, especially playoffs, you shorten to a 9 man rotation, if that. So that was the main focus of the draft, with the other spots going toward situational/injury replacement roles.
So we are very pleased with how are team turned out via the draft. Here’s the rundown of the complete lineup and the qualifications, then I will discuss the cohesion/vision of the team as a whole.
STARTING LINEUP:
Center: Alonzo Mourning, ’98-’99.
PPG: 20.1
RPG: 11.0
APG: 1.6
BPG: 3.9
SPG: .7
FG%: .511
FT%: .652
Notes: All-NBA 1st Team, All-Defense 1st team, Defensive Player of the Year. Can’t go wrong with those credentials anchoring the post and defense.
Power Forward: Karl Malone, ’96-‘97
PPG: 27.4
RPG: 9.9
APG: 4.5
BPG: .6
SPG: 1.4
FG%: .550
FT%: .755
Notes: League MVP, All-NBA 1st, All-Defense 1st. That means we have 2 all-defense 1st teamers (one a DPOY), anchoring the team defense at the 4/5 spot. Also note the assists for Malone.
Small Forward: Chris Mullin, ’89-‘90
PPG: 25.1
RPG: 5.9
APG: 4.1
BPG: .6
SPG: 1.6
FG%: .536
3FG%: .372
FT%: .889
Notes: Dream Team, All-NBA 3rd Team. Interestingly enough, he made All-NBA 2nd the next year, and All-NBA 1st the year after, but we thing this was his best year (probably league recognition was just delayed). We believe this because his scoring was similar, Percentages were better, rebounding and assists were better, all in less minutes. We really like his floor stretching ability from the SF spot and he’s a high-character, team-first guy. But he’s not just a shooter: great athlete, and creative scorer from all places on the floor.
Shooting Guard: Dan Majerle ’91-‘92
PPG: 17.3
RPG: 5.9
APG: 3.3
BPG: .5
SPG: 1.6
FG%: .478
3FG%: .382
FT%: .756
Notes: All Defense 2nd, All Star. This may be a surprise start, as Carmelo is the more pure talent. Both Majerle and Mullin are excellent choices at SG or SF, so the Mullin/Melo starting combo was tempting. However, while Carmelo and Mullin are both decent defensively, we really like the extra distance sharpshooter in Majerle as well as his extremely good defense at the wing spot. We feel that having such a defender at the wings really balances the starting lineup, and, as you will see, we like Carmelo’s fit with specific bench players.
Point Guard: Isiah Thomas ’89-‘90
PPG: 18.4
RPG: 3.8
APG: 9.4
BPG: .2
SPG: 1.7
FG%: .438
3FG%: .309
FT%: .775
Notes: Finals MVP, All Star. We love Isiah here. This team packs plenty of scoring, so we really wanted a true veteran leader initiating and controlling the flow of the game. Additionally, we know what is unfairly said about Malone and the last two minutes of a game. First, frankly, we think this team is good enough that the last two minutes shouldn’t matter as much as they did for Utah. Second, Isiah helps alleviate that as he was even better in the playoffs than he was during the regular season, providing mental and physical toughness as well as leadership and knowledge of what it takes to lead a team to the championship. For all those reasons, we love having Isiah in the year he was Finals MVP leading this team: the best player, point guard, and true leader of the best team that year.
BENCH (Notes may get shorter the deeper we get):
C: Vlade Divac ’94-‘95
PPG: 16.0
RPG: 10.4
APG: 4.1
BPG: 2.2
SPG: 1.4
FG%: .507
FT%: .777
Notes: Vlade is the perfect true center off the bench for this team. He does some of everything, all of which is done at a high level. Steals, blocks, rebounds, scoring, and drawing charges…what more could you want from your backup Center? Oh, his passing. Best big man passer between Walton and KG, perfect for this team. If (though unlikely) our team is having some trouble with an opposing shotblocker negating our dribble drives, pick and rolls, or post play, we simply swap in Divac and pair him with Malone. Draw out the shot blocker and initiate the offense from the high post, pick ‘em apart.
SF: Carmelo Anthony ’07-‘08
PPG: 25.7
RPG: 7.4
APG: 3.4
BPG: .5
SPG: 1.3
FG%: .492
3FG%: .354
FT%: .786
Notes: All-Star, Sandwich of All-NBA 3rd team around this particular year, but we’re going ’07-’08 because, though pure scoring was down, his efficiency was very good and it was his best rebounding year so far. We couldn’t avoid picking Anthony where we got him. Elite all-around talent. Knows how to win (college champ) and plays his best when the talent is the highest. There’s a reason he’s stood out on every Team USA team on which he has participtated. We could start him and bring Mullin in for 6th man, but we’re going for Carmelo primarily because his SF post game is off-the-charts good, so we like Carmelo in the game when Vlade is in, so that the whole offense gets inverted: Center outside, SF working the post. That particular tandem coming in off the bench is hard to defend. I see Carmelo finishing a lot of close games. Kobe gets all the press for being clutch, but we’ve been through this a lot: he misses way more “clutch” shots than he makes, he just takes a lot of them and people remember the highlight makes and forget the numerous misses. Carmelo, on the other hand, has consistently been one of the most clutch players in the whole NBA when the game is on the line, and the stats actually back it up…it’s just not the ESPN company line.
PG: Fat Lever ’89-‘90
PPG: 18.3
RPG: 9.3
APG: 6.5
BPG: .2
SPG: 2.1
FG%: .443
3FG%: .414
FT%: .804
Notes: All-Star. Just 2 seasons removed from official recognition as All-Defense 2nd Team. Love Lever. Hugely underrated player. Great outside shooting, top-tier defense at either guard spot, and INSANE rebounding. Think Rondo minus some court vision plus .414 from 3 point range. What else could you want from your backup pg?
PF: Andrei Kirilenko ’05-‘06
PPG: 15.3
RPG: 8.0
APG: 4.3
BPG: 3.2
SPG: 1.5
FG%: .460
3FG%: .308
FT%: .699
Notes: All Defense 1st Team. With the bench frontcourt (Divac, Carmelo) known more for offense, we went with the 2005-06 version of Kirilenko when he was a game-changing elite defending power forward (Boozer only started 19 games that year) who could also be used to shut down small forwards if needed. We love him for his versatility, defense and filling up the stat line wherever it needs filling. After all, he’s the one that made the “5x5” vogue for a while.
SG: Rolando Blackman ’90-‘91
PPG: 17.3
RPG: 5.9
APG: 3.3
BPG: .5
SPG: 1.6
FG%: .478
3FG%: .382
FT%: .756
Notes: in ’89-’90 he was an all-star. Scoring, assists and rebounds were at his career averages, his three point shooting was low, 2pt shooting very good. In ’91-’92, his FT shooting and 3pt shooting was very good, but his overall fg%, assists, and rebounds dropped. So we split the difference. In ’90-’91 he was basically the exact same as his previous season (all-star), with his 3pt % jumping up .50 (.302 to .351) while his 2pt shooting dropped just a liitle (.498 to .482). Basically, we love his all-around game off the bench. Known as a plus defender and plus athlete who can do damage from any spot on the floor and on both ends of the court.
C: Theo Ratliff ’98-‘99
PPG: 11.2
RPG: 8.1
APG: .6
BPG: 3.0
SPG: .9
FG%: .470
FT%: .725
Notes: All-defense 2nd Team. Tempted to go with his 3.7 bpg all-star season, but he missed 32 games that year. As an aside, we could play AK47, ‘Zo, and Theo for a total of 10.1 blocks per game!
SF: Dale Ellis ’89-‘90
PPG: 23.5
RPG: 4.3
APG: 2.0
BPG: .1
SPG: 1.1
FG%: .497
3FG%: .375
FT%: .818
Notes: One year after his All-star, All-NBA 3rd Team appearance. Sweat shooting bench SF.
SG/PG Kirk Hinrich ’06-‘07
PPG: 16.6
RPG: 3.4
APG: 6.3
BPG: .3
SPG: 1.3
FG%: .448
3FG%: .415
FT%: .835
Notes: All-Defense 2nd Team. Love his combination of Defense and outside shot. Elite defender of either guard spot, just the way our team shook out he’d primarily be an SG. But really, an end-of bench defensive body that shoots over .400 from three.
PG Dana Barros ’94-‘95
PPG: 18.3
RPG: 3.0
APG: 6.7
BPG: 0
SPG: 1.6
FG%: .490
3FG%: .464
FT%: .899
Notes: Another situational pick. 3rd string pure point, injury security, incredible three point year…excited to see what he’d shoot from downtown if surrounded by all the weapons we have on this team.
PF/C Raef Lafrentz ’01-‘02
PPG: 13.4
RPG: 7.4
APG: 1.1
BPG: 2.7
SPG: .7
FG%: .458
3FG%: .388
FT%: .695
Notes: Pre-injury, he was a great shotblocker AND deep shooter. We like him for both abilities, especially his ability to stretch the floor and open spaces in combination with Divac if needed situationally.
Here’s the more traditional depth chart layout:
PG: Isiah/Fat Lever/Barros
SG: Majerle/Blackman/Hinrich
SF: Mullin/Anthony/Ellis
PF: Malone/Kirilenko/Lafrentz
C: Mourning/Divac/Ratliff
For a 9-man rotation in a tough playoff game, I'd see the general minutes being:
PG: Thomas 35/Fat 13
SG: Majerle 32/Mullin 16
SF: Mullin 16/ Anthony 32
PF: Malone 40/Kirilenko 8
C: Mourning 35/Vlade 13
Obviously with modulations up and down depending on what's going on; maybe Mullin only plays the 16 at SF and Blackman/Hinrich gets the backup SG time. Maybe anthony drops to 10 minutes and Kirilenko gets big minutes at SF if we're playing against Lebron or something. More Vlade if we need to move the shot blocker out. Etc.
So that’s the breakdown of the roster. You can already see from the notes most of the basic team philosophy. Just a couple quick points of emphasis
-The thing that will set Golden State apart is the defensive excellence WITHOUT offensive compromise. Strong defense anchoring the 4/5, with either Majerle or Blackman at the wing and either Isiah or Fat at the point, Kirilenko for PF/elite SFs, with others (i.e. Ratliff/Hinrich) subbed as needed. Most of all these teams are going to be potent offensively, I genuinely feel we can offensively hang with any other roster out there and are significantly better defensively (especially with Larry Brown coaching) than the other most potent offensive teams.
-The pieces fit. Scoring, defense, veteran leadership. I see a lot of Pick and Roll (Malone being the greatest big man roller of the entire post-’90 era) and Isiah just finding Malone or Mourning or a sniper on the wings, and picking apart opposing defenses. Our bench has pieces to either slide right into the lineup to replace starters or to change the flow of the game if needed (i.e. using the ‘Melo/Divac sub to invert the offense and open up the paint if needed). Additionally, we have guys that cover other guys’ faults, when they exist. Big knock on Malone was that he couldn’t get it done in the closing minutes of big games; that’s what Isiah and Carmelo are for.
-Versatility. A lot of our guys are outstanding at multiple aspects of the game and can play multiple positions, especially on defense. This allows us to mix and match based on matchups and who is hot in a particular game. No one on the team is one dimensional, no one player could you game plan for or pick out and say “that’s what we’re exploiting tonight.”
-Attitude. Especially among the top 9, we focused on guys that know what it takes to be on great teams and truly value winning and mental toughness.
-So there it is. In general, I see this team being a three-way hybrid of Karl Malone's Utah-style pick and roll, Larry Brown's '03-'04 defense and team concept ball, and '07-'08 Boston's elite blend of simultaneous top-5 defense and top-5 offense with veteran savvy. It won't be pretty all the time, but it's consistent with no holes, like Boston '08 or Detroit '04. If you buy into the idea that winning championships is equal parts offense, defense, leadership, and chemistry/fit (and I think our own ’07-’08 Celtics showed that), I think Golden State has the most balanced, two-way team; we're a championship contending squad, with the best chances of bringing home the title.
Topic: CB Historical Draft - Team Rosters/Panelists Comments (Read 87939 times)