NBA Season Preview 2018-19: Every team’s biggest question
By Ben Ladner
Golden State Warriors: Who is in the closing lineup?
The Warriors further tilted the NBA’s power balance in their favor this summer and could be so dominant as to render any questions we have of them irrelevant. But the addition of DeMarcus Cousins to one of the most dominant teams ever does create some uncertainty as to how Steve Kerr’s rotation will look and whether he’s willing to occasionally abjure the principles that have defined his team in favor of sheer talent. The Warriors’ Death Lineup has slaughtered the rest of the NBA in recent years through its relentless pace, defensive versatility and crisp ball movement. While the team’s talent has made those virtues sing, Andre Iguodala exemplifies what makes the Warriors the Warriors. His individual defense on stars has tied together a stingy unit; his ability to probe in transition and willingness to pass up his own offense in search of better shots makes the most threatening offense in NBA history hum; his intelligence and savvy ensures that Golden State operates at peak capacity when the stakes are highest.
Cousins’ game will challenge some of the Warriors’ inherent qualities, and he’ll have to make accommodations for his new team, rather than vice versa. But Kerr will inevitably make tweaks to suit Cousins, so long as they still fit within the context of his style. Cousins will punish any team that chooses to play small while he’s on the floor, and against most centers in the NBA, his prowess on the perimeter makes him virtually unguardable. He has never been unleashed like he will be on the Warriors, nor has he had surrounding personnel that comes close to rivaling Golden State’s core.
This assumes full health on Cousins’ part, far from a guarantee given his size, his age and nature of his injury. On the Warriors, he has the luxury of waiting. Jordan Bell will be a capable starter in his place, and Iguodala will continue to finish close games with Golden State’s four All Stars. The intrigue will come when (if) the Warriors are pushed in the playoffs and Kerr must decide on a fifth man to close games. He may well decide on a game-to-game basis. And, if all goes according to plan, it may not matter.