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The Golden State Warriors' depth will be tested early on in the upcoming season, especially in the frontcourt. With Draymond Green out to start the year, the Warriors will be missing the defensive versatility and playmaking he provides, testing the limits of the team's limited depth at the big man spots in the process.
Nevertheless, there's no perfect time for the team's more unheralded frontcourt players, such as Trayce Jackson-Davis, and Usman Garuba, to establish themselves as potential fixtures of the Warriors' rotation. Garuba, in particular, is a player who must show out in preseason to solidify his rotation spot in Green's absence.
However, it stands to reason that the Dubs would again prefer to go small whenever they could once the 2016 Defensive Player of the Year returns. Thus, even though Garuba and Jackson-Davis impress in preseason, they may find it difficult to crack the rotation on a consistent basis.
Thus, the heated preseason rotation battles from the Warriors may come more at the team's loaded backcourt spots. Behind Stephen Curry, Chris Paul, and Klay Thompson, the team has Cory Joseph, Moses Moody, Gary Payton II, and Brandin Podziemski all fighting for minutes. And given the team's win-now mandate, this player must have a really good preseason for him to set himself apart and truly cement himself as a fixture of the 2023-24 Warriors rotation.
Without further ado, this is the main Warriors player who must have a good preseason to solidify his spot in the rotation.
Warriors player who must have a good preseason to solidify rotation spot: Brandin Podziemski
The strength of the Warriors' roster lies in its backcourt, just the way it has for years; that is simply the fact of life for a team led by Stephen Curry. With an offense built around Curry's gravity, the team relies on pace and space as well as non-stop movement off the ball to push opposing defenses to their breaking point. And in the Dubs' system that relies on making reads ten steps ahead of the opponent, head coach Steve Kerr has some high standards when it comes to the players he gives heavy minutes to especially if they're currently in a win-now mandate.
This could be seen in Kerr's usage of Jonathan Kuminga; Kuminga is capable of some explosive scoring nights, and his athleticism is a sight to behold. But Kuminga doesn't have the playmaking capabilities Kerr is hoping for in someone heavily involved in the rotation, and the 21-year old combo forward tends to have tunnel vision when barreling his way towards the hoop.
Simply put, Steve Kerr is looking to give minutes to players who understand the way the Warriors play to a T. This is why Kerr is starting Chris Paul. Paul may not be a conductor of fast-paced offenses, but his playmaking and basketball IQ should allow him to flourish nonetheless.
So for Brandin Podziemski, he'll have to absorb the way the Warriors play in one offseason, which may be asking too much from a rookie. But in preseason, Podziemski will have plenty of chances to apply whatever it is he's learned from the Warriors coaching staff, and all he has to do to crack the rotation is execute properly, since he definitely has the talent to excel.
The Warriors will be more invested in Podziemski's development than utilizing Cory Joseph, for as long as it doesn't come at the expense of wins. And in the Warriors' first preseason game, Podziemski showed that he may not need too much time to marinate. He was able to keep his dribble alive deep in the paint, an incredible skill for such a young guard to have, and he flashed his passing ability as well, pinging impressive skip passes to the opposite corner for an open three-pointer.
Moreover, Brandin Podziemski showed that he's a willing rebounder, carrying over the ability to crash the boards that he showed during his final season at Santa Clara. This will only endear him even further to the Warriors coaching staff, since the team tends to lose out on the boards due to their small-ball preferences.
Podziemski's calling card is his shooting, of course, and nailing threes might be his most surefire way to get minutes. He'll have to show that he can shoot off the move and create separation from his defender off the ball, as he may be utilized in a more off-ball role alongside a more established playmaker to help ease him into the thick of the Warriors' shot-creation burden. But it's looking like the 20-year old guard is starting to make good on his promise to put his dreadful Summer League performance completely in the rearview mirror.
