Golden State Warriors: Takeaways From Game 1 Of The Preseason

The NBA finally returned back into our respective lives on Saturday when the new-look Golden State Warriors faced off against the Toronto Raptors in Vancouver.

Oct 1, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen curry (30) lays up for two points against Toronto Raptors in the first quarter at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY Sports

NBA BASKETBALL IS BACK (all caps to express my excitement)!!! And what a way to begin, featuring the hottest story line of the offseason.

On a rather smoggy afternoon in downtown Vancouver (in my best Marv Albert voice), the new villains of the NBA, the Golden State Warriors, took their talents north of the border to take on “Canada’s team”, in the Toronto Raptors.

With all eyes on the Dubs and their newest edition, Kevin Durant, the sold out crowd at the Rogers Arena served as the platform in which the NBA universe got their first collective glimpses at the new greatest show on earth.

At the end of the night, the Raptors gave the capacity audience an entertaining win, en route to handing KD and the Dubs their first L during the process; but, as such with the nature of the preseason, wins and losses are very much or moot at this point (unless you’re the 2012-13 Los Angeles Lakers, amirite?!?).

Preseason, contrarily, are used as very tentative litmus test to see how a team will function, and how the rotations will play out when the real season begins.

Without a doubt, this wasn’t your typical first game of the preseason, as reporters from the New York Times traveled up all the way to the great Northwest just to cover this affair. Surely, the Warriors are going to get the Miami Heatles treatment for the rest of the year.

For all its worth, everything from here on out will be magnified, and at times, even exaggerated; but in this brave new world of social media, this is what we do. Without further to do, here are some (very initial) takeways of the newly-formed NWO Dubs.

September 26, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) addresses the media in a press conference during media day at the Warriors Practice Facility. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Everybody Hates KD …

On paper, this was a Raptors home game; as after all, they are billed and marketed as Canada’s team.

But, as a Vancouverite myself, I can attest that the majority of the locals on the west coast are anything but.

Sure, there’s your one-in-10 Raptors diehard here-and-there, but for the most part, ever since the Grizzlies departed from my hometown in 2001, it’s been about as bipartisan of a crowd as you could find.

As such, the environment gave a nice feel of how your everyday fan feels about the new look Warriors. And, undoubtedly, the first thing you noticed, or rather heard, were the smattering pf boos that “rained” upon Kevin Durant everytime he touched the ball.

For someone who, by all accounts, is as sensitive as KD is known to be, his demanor and emotions will be something to monitor going forward as he evolves into the most hated man in the league.

On the court, although he finished the game shooting just 2-of-9 from the field in just 16 minutes of first half play, he did missed several wide open looks, including a few (of many more to come) Stephen Curry-to-Durant connections, that he should nail with regularity when the season begins in under a month’s time.

The versatility he brings, on the other hand, was evident already, as he ran more pick-and-rolls in just one half of play than Harrison Barnes did in his four years as a Warrior.

Defensively, he showed how bothersome his length can be, especially in transition and at the end of the first half when coach Steve Kerr deployed their Super Death Lineup of Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Draymond Green, and KD.

Oct 1, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) defends against Golden State Warriors guard Stephen curry (30) in the first quarter at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY Sports

… But Everyone Still Loves Steph

As mentioned, the capacity crowd at the Rogers Arena was as bipartisan as they come; and unlike Durant, who was booed everytime he touched the ball, Curry was met with a ton of cheers and oohs-and-ahhs with every move, shot, and no look behind-the-back pass the chef made.

This will serve as an interesting dynamic going forward. With so much attention thrusted upon the 2016-17 rendition of the Dubs, how will such a contrast of reception affect the Curry-Durant synergistic relationship over the entirety of a season?

Performance wise, Curry was shaking off some preseason rust; most notably, air-balling a pull-up 30-footer while coming off of a high brush screen — a shot that he nails with regularity last year.

He also uncharacteristically missed a free throw and a wide open look from the corner, and threw the ball away on a couple of mindless occasions; but, all in all, the pop and pep in his step seemed to have returned.

Oct 1, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durrant takes a shot over Patrick Patterson (54) in the second quarter at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY Sports

Kerr Already Staggering KD & Steph

One of the most infuriating things Thunder fans have had to endure over the years was the refusal of coaches Scott Brooks and Billy Donovan (only initially) to ever stagger the minutes of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

It wasn’t until after the All-Star break when Donovan started to play KD more with OKC’s second unit.

Steve Kerr, in contrast, seems to have learned from Donovan’s and Brooks’ mistakes — sitting KD a bit earlier than Steph, Klay and Draymond, and inserting him back into the lineup during the start of the second quarter alongside Shaun Livingston and Iggy.

While playing the 4 on the Dubs’ second unit, KD was utilized more as a primary ball-handler, as opposed to a spot-up shooter and closeout attacker.

Having KD and Steph on the court at all times should shore up Golden State’s net rating with Curry on the bench, which sat at a disappointing minus-4.3 (when compared to plus-17.9 when he was on the floor) last season, per Basketball-Reference.

Oct 1, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) attempts to a shot while fouled by Toronto Raptors guard Drew Crawford (11) in the second quarter at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY Sports

Classic Preseason Affair

At the end of the day, this was just a preseason game — and boy did it have all of it’s cringe-worthy symptoms, as the teams combined to shoot just 41.2 percent from the field and committed a total of 44 turnovers.

Unless the Dubs go winless from here on out during the preseason, a la the 2012-13 Lakers, there is no reason to worry.

Will it take time for KD and the Death Lineup to adjust and amalgamate to one another’s strengths? Sure.

There were times when Durant looked like Barnes out there, drifting and spotting up. There were also times when he held the ball a little longer than he should have, and as a result, halted the Warriors patented “beautiful game” offense.

However, the Durant-Golden State marriage should evolve quite swimmingly with time, much like how LaMarcus Aldridge and the Spurs adjusted as the season went along last year.

On a side note, rookie Patrick McCaw continues to impress, and looks to be the more cogent option (as opposed to Ian Clark) at the backup two going forward.

Meanwhile, JaVale McGee gave glimpses of his breathtaking athleticism as a finisher and rim protector in his limited minutes, but for the most part, he looked completely lost out there (or, in other words, he looked like JaVale McGee out there).

It will be a long, winding road ahead for these Golden State Warriors, and Saturday in Vancouver just served as the very first, media-frenzied step.