Room for improvement in the Golden State Warriors

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After 11 games in the ongoing NBA season, the defending champions have demonstrated several areas of concern they need to focus on. While the Golden State Warriors have long been known for their defence and offence both, they currently have the fourth worst defence in the league. Currently conceding an average of 126.6 points per game, the Warriors are ranked behind Houston, Detroit, and San Antonio. Furthermore, opponent teams are scoring 8 more free-throws per game in comparison to the Warriors, and 5.6 more points at the line. The squad’s offense is also out of shape and ranked 14^th in the NBA right now. This is of less concern, though, as the ranking considers both the starting lineup and the bench, and so far, Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green, and Kevon Looney have led the team to many victories. If Klay Thompson and Jordan Poole are able to polish up their performances, the Warriors’ offence will be a force to watch out for.

However, the leaky defence is also causing the Warriors to commit the highest number of fouls in the league which is 23.9 per game. Poor communication and transitions amongst Wiseman, Kuminga, Moody, DiVincenzo and Green, have exacerbated the issue further. The fouls have also slowed down the offence, and the Warriors need to fix their defense to prevent their game from spiralling any further. Finally, Golden State’s bench has been underperforming and squandering the leads made by the starters. Each reserve player has strengths and weaknesses, and the Warriors must plug all these vulnerabilities to keep their title hopes alive.