On a random regular season night back in February of 2024, the Golden State Warriors had their game against the Indiana Pacers in hand (very much unlike their recent luck against the Pacers these past two seasons). The score was 114-98 with less than five minutes to go in the game, which can be considered a comfortable lead, yet uncomfortable given their history of falling apart in clutch period as easily as a house of cards. With Draymond Green handling the ball and Steph Curry starting the play from the left elbow area, it was looking like the setup for one of their patented Green-Curry linkups: an inverted pick-and-roll, with Green ready to come of off Curry’s step-up ballscreen and hopefully being given a free lane to the rim, taking advantage of defenders’ reluctance to detach themselves from Curry, while his deceptively bone-crushing screens stopping Green’s defender in his tracks.
There is an abundance of film of this action on record, enough for opponents to expect what is to come. Conventional wisdom states that it should simply be a switch; however, it’s not as simple as exchanging assignments. In the instance against the Pacers, a switch would mean that Curry would have a slower big against him, while Green will find himself having a defender much smaller than him. Granted, the former is a much more threatening prospect for defenses as compared to the latter, due to Green’s general reluctance to score. But it is a situation most defenses would still avoid, if only to not have their big be brought up to dance with Curry in isolation.
As such, TJ McConnell expects to follow Curry, Green having a driving lane be damned. Isaiah Jackson also expects the screen from Curry to come and responds by sticking close to Green and crowding his space, in what looks like an attempt to get “skinny” and slither past the upcoming Curry screen. But unbeknownst to both McConnell and Jackson, Curry doesn’t set a screen at all — a proverbial curve ball that throws both Pacers around for a loop:
The sudden shift from an inverted screen to a handoff has the unintended (or is it intended?) consequence of McConnell being unintentionally screened by his own teammate and having to navigate around an additional obstacle just to jump at Curry. Unfortunately for McConnell, the space that was given to Curry is ample opportunity for him to pull up for three.
Only a few offensive possessions in this young season have ended in a shot attempt or turnover for the Warriors whenever they have had someone come off of a handoff, whether standstill or while the passer dribbles in a DHO (dribble handoff) situation. Per Synergy tracking, the Warriors have had a total of 35 handoff possessions that ended in a shot attempt or turnover — ranking 18th in the league. But they have scored a total of 47 points off of such play types, translating into a points per handoff figure of 1.343, third in the NBA. Curry having to work harder to come off of them, coupled with defenders employing switching and two-to-the-ball coverages against the Warriors’ handoffs, hasn’t given them the expected frequency of handoff possessions that perhaps they would have wanted to accrue. Which is why methods employing trickery and deception have had to be resorted to by Curry, Green, and Steve Kerr.
With the possession above in mind, let us fast forward to this season, during the Warriors’ season-opening tilt against the Los Angeles Lakers. An inverted pick-and-roll set is dialed up for Green, but instead of Curry setting the screen, it’s Brandin Podziemski. More so than the difference in personnel, take note of where Podziemski elects to set the screen:
As opposed to where Curry typically sets the screen:
That said, the location of the screen is determined by how closely Green’s defender is guarding him. In the second image above, Domantas Sabonis is above the arc against Green, which compels Curry to set the screen above the arc. In contrast, Jaxson Hayes in the first image is “guarding” Green in the sense that he virtually isn’t, with his stance being somewhat of a customary necessity instead of a cautionary gesture. In that regard, the counter to Hayes sagging off of Green is to set the screen where Hayes is at: the free-thr0w line.
Again, given Green’s general reluctance to score, it may have been prudent for Austin Reaves to switch onto Green around the screen instead of following Podziemski. Not choosing to do so gives Green an unobstructed runway to the rim, with subtle help from Quinten Post and Buddy Hield in both corners (i.e., keeping their defenders close to them because of their ability to shoot the ball).
Podziemski setting the “snug” inverted ballscreen is perhaps one of the more understated and subtle adjustments Kerr and his coaching staff have made this season, in an effort to weaponize a coverage employed against Green that otherwise de-weaponizes him. Having Podziemski set the screen against the Lakers was perhaps an experimental sequence. Slotting Curry into Podziemski’s place, in theory, proves to be even more deadly, a scenario Kerr finally unleashed against the Phoenix Suns.
As expected, Curry motions as if to set the screen below the arc, near the free-throw line. Green’s defender (Mark Williams) drops slightly in anticipation of Curry’s screen, in an effort to avoid getting caught by the screen.
But in dropping back, Williams unknowingly takes himself out of the equation for what is about to happen, while simultaneously isolating his teammate (Ryan Dunn) against what would be a dribble handoff — and therefore, a fake inverted ballscreen — for Curry. Williams realizes his gaffe too late, coaxed into playing drop coverage against the player who has built a reputation for torching conservative coverages:
The convergence of concepts displayed above would not have been made possible without the non-verbal chemistry and mind-meld between Curry and Green, a legendary duo that continues to be an effective one. In 177 minutes of the Curry-Green pairing this season, the Warriors have outscored opponents by a total of 69 points (16.4 points per 100 possessions). The Warriors have a 123.8 offensive rating during those minutes and a defensive rating of 107.4.
To nobody’s surprise, Green is proving himself to be a crucial component of the Warriors’ defense, if not the crucial component. The Warriors are sporting a 104.2 defensive rating with Green on the floor; without him, that figure balloons to 121.8. Even at 35-years old, the Warriors find it difficult to survive minutes where Green has to sit, simply because of the lack of anchoring, direction, and defensive playmaking that becomes apparent once he has to sit on the bench — not unlike how the Warriors’ offense suffers a glaring dropoff whenever Curry has to sit down (especially before the acquisition of Jimmy Butler).
Green may have the occasional headscratchers in terms of play and demeanor. But no one can deny the value he continues to bring on defense.
This current stretch of eight games in 15 nights and three sets of back-to-backs hasn’t done the Warriors any favors, especially when it comes to Curry, Green, and Butler, all north of 35-years old and having had extensive mileage on their proverbial treads. The creakiness is starting to show, as it was recently revealed that Curry is battling a cold and will not be available against the Sacramento Kings tomorrow night, while Butler — who tweaked his lower back against the Suns — may also be sidelined against the Kings. Green will most likely play, albeit without his decade-long partner in crime and the Warriors’ second offensive option.
Despite age becoming more than just a number and flashes of it manifesting on court, Curry and Green remain the pillars of this organization. Amid noise from some parties bemoaning their eventual demise and calling for them to make way for the younger prospects on the team, the duo is showing just enough — through their ability to disguise their “handoff” actions — that they aren’t ready to hand off the reins of the franchise just yet.
