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Anthony Gharib, ESPN
After a five-game winning streak in December, the Golden State Warriors have lost four of their past six games heading into Wednesday’s meeting with the New Orleans Pelicans (8:30 p.m. EST on ABC).
Draymond Green is set to return soon from an indefinite suspension, but now Chris Paul is sidelined. The 12-time All-Star is expected to miss four to six weeks due to a fracture in his left hand.
Paul was another ball handler who could help Stephen Curry and has assisted in limiting Golden State’s turnovers. The Warriors had a 13.2% turnover percentage while Paul was on the floor, compared to 15.9% when he wasn’t — a difference between ranking in the top 10 and 29th in the NBA, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Here are some key numbers from the Warriors’ 17-19 record.
13: The lack of continuity in its starting five could be one reason for Golden State’s troubles. The Warriors have started 13 different lineups this season — the ninth most overall — including four different ones in the past six games.
Injuries and the suspension of Green have contributed to Golden State’s issues, but the core lineup of Curry, Green, Klay Thompson, Kevon Looney and Andrew Wiggins also has struggled.
In 113 minutes this season, it has a net efficiency of minus-9.8, which ranks 37th out of 45 lineups that have played at least 100 minutes. For comparison: Last season, that group’s net efficiency was plus-21.9 in 331 minutes, ranking first out of 102 lineups to play at least 100 minutes.
116.2: An oddity during head coach Steve Kerr’s tenure, the Warriors’ defensive efficiency (116.2) ranks 21st in the NBA.
This marks only the second time since Kerr’s hiring in 2014 that Golden State has ranked in the bottom 10 in defensive efficiency — the last time being the 2019-20 season, when the Warriors won 15 games.
In recent seasons, Green’s return to play might have been expected to bolster the defense. However, the former Defensive Player of the Year is having his worst season on that side of the ball.
Opponents are shooting 44.5% when Green is the contesting defender, according to Second Spectrum, which would be his worst rate during the Kerr era.
10: The Warriors’ numbers with and without Green are eerily similar. Golden State is 10-11 without Green and 7-8 with him.
The Warriors are outscoring opponents by just 1.9 points when Green plays compared to being outscored by a point when he doesn’t. Golden State is also allowing only 4.7 points per game less when Green is in the lineup.
150: It’s been a tough season for Wiggins, who averaged 18.3 points and 8.8 rebounds during the 2022 NBA Finals.
Last season, he had his lowest scoring average (17.1) since his rookie year (16.9), and this season hasn’t been any better. Wiggins has a plus/minus of minus-150 — the worst of any player on the Warriors. Looney is a distant second worst at minus-64.
4: The Warriors have blown four leads of at least 18 points this season, tied with the San Antonio Spurs for the most in the NBA and most during Kerr’s coaching tenure.
Golden State has also played 28 out of 35 games in the clutch, amassing a 14-14 record. The Warriors are the first team to play that many clutch games in its first 35 games since at least 1997-98.
23.7: After a strong start to the season, Curry has cooled off since Green’s ejection against the Phoenix Suns on Dec. 12. He’s averaging 23.7 points per game on 41% shooting from the field.
Curry’s 3-point shooting percentage has dropped from 43% to 35%.
ESPN Stats & Information research contributed to this article.
Source: www.espn.com