Porous 3-point defense dooms the Warriors in a resounding defeat to Trail Blazers

The Warriors’ more optimistic fans came into the season with reason to wonder if their team could fight: Head coach Steve Kerr spent training camp preaching the importance of a defense in the top 10.

While Kerr was thrilled with Golden State’s defensive progress in practice, he knew it would be difficult to talk about the progress in real games. A team that finished fifth worst in the NBA last season in defensive odds added no proven stopper to the list.

In the Warriors’ 123-98 loss to the Trail Blazers on Friday night at the Chase Center, they continued to show why Kerr’s training camp optimism might have been unrealistic. It didn’t matter that Golden State focused on limiting Portland’s own appearance from 3 points. Once the reveal arrived, the Warriors left the Trail Blazers shooters open again and again beyond the arc.

Even the return of former Defensive Player of the Year Draymond Green, who missed the first four regular season games with a right foot problem after missing the entire preseason with a positive coronavirus test, could pull Golden out. State of his sleep. On numerous occasions, Warriors were given excessive help in situations that did not require it or were slow to rotate.

They were left to watch Portland shoot 20 for 43 (47%) from beyond the arc. It’s no surprise that Damian Lillard (34 points) and CJ McCollum (28 points), one of the deepest league’s most prolific backcourts, combined for 10 of 3 points.

Unable to chain the stops in the critical zone, the Warriors did not threaten after having dug a hole 31-11 at the end of the first quarter. Shortly before halftime, Golden State reduced its deficit to single digits, only to be canceled out by lazy closings, ball-watching and questionable assist defense.

After closing their recent four-game trip with two narrow wins, the Warriors had to look at a sobering truth: They’ll only be a factor in a busy Western conference if they can sort out their defensive issues. Kerr had stressed the importance of a defense in the top 10 because, as the history of the league illustrates, teams only fight when they are among the best to get saves.

But with their top perimeter defenseman Klay Thompson out for the season with a torn right Achilles tendon, the Warriors have no one who has made life difficult for high scoring guards. Long, athletic wings Andrew Wiggins and Kelly Oubre Jr. have yet to prove that they can count on talents like Lillard or McCollum.

While some other youngsters in the Warriors have a defensive promise, they are still figuring out the nuances of Kerr’s switching system. Which is why Green’s return was supposed to be of such great help on Friday. A vocal leader, he is a master at organizing background warriors and barking directions.

But Green is still in good shape after more than 300 days away from NBA games and he was limited to just 18 minutes against the Trail Blazers. When on the ground, he barely looked like an All-Star on several occasions, shooting 0 for 3 from the field and doing a number of defensive spins.

In Saturday’s video study, the Warriors will look to address the defensive issues that have plagued them in each of their five games this season. They are a team that allowed their opponents to shoot 85 for 190 from 3 points to easily place last in the league in this category.

Such ineptitude along the perimeter made it difficult for the Warriors to do what they do best – take quick breaks, push the ground aside, and take down open shots. Golden State shot just 38.5% from the field (7 in 35, 20% in 3 points) on Friday. Apart from Stephen Curry (26 points), few players have made timely shots.

What’s frustrating for Kerr is that he thought his team could surprise people defensively this season. The good news for him is that with 67 games to go, Golden State still has plenty of time to be competent on that side of the court.