{"id":61292,"date":"2025-05-14T07:55:42","date_gmt":"2025-05-14T07:55:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=61292"},"modified":"2025-05-14T07:55:53","modified_gmt":"2025-05-14T07:55:53","slug":"steve-kerr-defends-struggling-warriors-starter-before-game-5-vs-timberwolves","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=61292","title":{"rendered":"Steve Kerr Defends Struggling Warriors Starter Before Game 5 vs. Timberwolves"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Steve<\/p>\n

Of the many reasons the Warriors have struggled in their series against the Timberwolves in the Western Conference finals, you’d have to tick off a number of boxes before you came to one that, in hindsight, has been pretty obvious. Yes, there is\u00a0Stephen Curry<\/a>‘s\u00a0hamstring injury<\/a>, as well as\u00a0Draymond Green<\/a>‘s\u00a0poor behavior<\/a>\u00a0and the Timberwolves’ size and defense.<\/p>\n

All those are important reasons the Warriors have struggled and are now down, 3-1, in the series, facing elimination from the playoffs on Wednesday in Minnesota.<\/p>\n

But amid all those valid shortcomings has been an epically bad perfromance from Brandin Podziemski, the second-year Warriors guard who averaged 11.7 points on 44.5% shooting and 37.2% 3-point shooting this season.\u00a0 Podziemski had raised hopes as a strong candidate to fill the Warriors’ third-scorer role with his performance after the Dubs made the\u00a0Jimmy Butler<\/a>\u00a0trade–he averaged 15.5 points after the All-Star break, and made 43.8% of his 3s.<\/p>\n

But Podziemski struggled in the first round against the Rockets. And he has fallen apart in the conference semis against the Timberwolves: 7.5 points on 22.5% shooting, including 17.6% from the 3-point line (3-for-17).<\/p>\n

Thus, the question was put to Warriors coach Steve Kerr: Why keep going back to Podziemski as a starter? Why not look to Gary Payton II (Kerr did so in Game 6 vs. Houston) or gamble on, say, Gui Santos or\u00a0Jonathan Kuminga<\/a>?<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
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Kerr was asked that on 95.7 The Game radio in San Francisco. He rushed to Podziemski’s defense:<\/p>\n

“He reads the game, he handles the ball, he passes, he’s a great rebounder,” Kerr said on the “Willard & Dibs” show. “He sees things defensively, so he’s always in the right spot. The game just connects when he’s out there. It just makes a lot of sense for the rest of the group. That doesn’t mean he’s perfect, but he does a lot of things that just makes the game make sense. Not every player does that frankly.<\/p>\n

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"[Brandin Podziemski] reads the game, he handles the ball, he passes, he's a great rebounder. He sees things defensively, so he's always in the right spot. The game just connects when he's out there. It just makes a lot of sense for the rest of the group.<\/p>\n

That doesn't mean he's\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/qRy44tiIsQ<\/a><\/p>\n

— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) May 14, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n