If Klay Thompson ends up becoming that significant extension prior to the Oct. 31 deadline, then he should look at giving a portion of it to new Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, whose opened-up crime has been generating only quality seems for the shooting guard during the preseason.
Thompson can keep most of the money; the huge majority of his improvement has to do with killer confidence and a perfect launch. We can not credit Kerr for all those things.
What is happening with Thompson is a symptom of a bigger change in Golden State—one that is giving rise to the expectation that last year’s 51-win campaign was just the beginning.
B/R’s Howard Beck chronicled the difficulties with former head coach Mark Jackson’s plan of attack:»The crime too often stalled and stagnated, leading to muddled isolation plays and contested jumpers. There was little motion or dynamism, and small sense of cohesion.»
Already one of the league’s best defensive outfits (the Warriors ranked third in defensive performance last year),» Kerr’s club is shifting the ball beautifully on crime. Andrew Bogut and David Lee, fantastic passers both, are currently hubs of this attack, and Stephen Curry, Andre Iguodala et al. are feasting on cuts, flares and brush displays.
All this, and Kerr has only had a few months to set up the basics of his admittedly complex plot.
If Golden State gets past the turnovers that hurt it last season and proceeded to crop up throughout the preseason, it’s the team with the best opportunity to choose among the West’s best 3 spots from the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Los Angeles Clippers or San Antonio Spurs.
If this occurs, Thompson won’t be lonely in owing a debt to Kerr. Fans across the Bay Area will be right there with him.
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