Golden State Warriors Will Be One Of NBA’s Best Transition Teams
This will be Andrew Wiggins’ first full-season with the Warriors, as he joined the team at the trade deadline a season ago, and with Kelly Oubre Jr. by his side on the wing, the Warriors could be one of the most dangerous transition teams in the NBA. Not only are these two lethal, athletic transition players, but James Wiseman is a rookie center who can run the court really well.
One thing the Warriors were great at over the course of their championship runs was getting the ball out in transition quickly and attacking their opponents while they were out of position. With Draymond Green and Stephen Curry being tremendous passers, the Warriors could look to use their young, athletic wings this year to attack teams in transition.
In 2019, the Warriors averaged 13.8 fast-break points per game, ranking them 9th in the league. In 2018, the Warriors were the 3rd best team in transition over the course of the season. This trend is likely to continue this year and if the Warriors are to make a run at making the NBA playoffs, they will have to be a Top 5 transition playing team over the course of the 2020-21 NBA season.
The key to their success in transition revolves around their core and their ability to get the ball up-and-down the court. We have seen Stephen and Draymond throw full-court passes with accuracy before and we should expect to see the same this year. The biggest thing the Warriors need to do in order to be successful in transition is rebound, which is exactly where James Wiseman and Marquese Chriss will come in handy for them.
Before being ruled ineligible for the remainder of the 2019-20 collegiate basketball season, Wiseman averaged 10.7 rebounds per game with Memphis. Chriss averaged 6.2 rebounds with the Warriors last season and will have a bigger role on the defensive side of things this year to ensure they are a better transition team.
A lot of the Warriors’ potential success hinges on their ability to play in transition and given their athleticism on the wing, they should have no problem finishing top-five in the league in fast-break points and as an overall transition playing team on offense.
