Getty JaMychal Green and Nemanja Bjelica battle for a rebound during a playoff game between the Denver Nuggets and the Golden State Warriors.
Much has been said and written about the mass exodus of contributing players from the Golden State Warriors‘ championship team in 2022, but that doesn’t make it hyperbole. Sure, Steve Kerr’s foundational six remain in place, but there’s no sugar-coating the fact that the Dubs lost an incredible amount of production in the second unit.
In numerical terms, Golden State watched about 35 points, 20 rebounds and nine assists per game walk out the door this summer. And that’s not even counting Andre Iguodala, whose future with the franchise is up in the air.
Thankfully, team president and chief decision-maker Bob Myers was able to offset some of those losses by adding a pair of playoff-tested, two-way vets.
And one of those ballers may be on the verge of an incredible bounce-back campaign, according to Bleacher Report‘s Zach Buckley
B/R: JaMychal Green Could Surprise
Buckley’s latest big listicle was crafted with the aim of identifying the “best-kept secret” on every NBA roster; players “whose perception lags behind their impact or what they can become.”
For the Warriors, that player was big man JaMychal Green, who struggled from distance in his second year with the Denver Nuggets last season.
Wrote Buckley:
JaMychal Green couldn’t shoot last season. More specially, he couldn’t shoot threes. His 87.1 free-throw percentage was actually a personal best, and his 48.6 field-goal percentage was the third-highest of his career. For whatever reason, though, he never found his three-ball and wound up shooting just 26.6 percent from range, easily his worst such mark as a rotation regular.
If he can recapture the magic from distance that saw him can 40.3% of his triples in 2018-19, 38.7% in ’19-20 and 39.9% in ’20-21, Green may just warrant mention as one of the steals of the offseason.
Golden State has every reason to believe in a bounce-back… Assuming he regains his touch, he’ll fit like a tailored suit in the Bay and have everyone wondering how the Warriors were able to land him on a minimum deal.
The latest Golden State Warriors news straight to your inbox! Heavy on Warriors newsletter here!
Wiggins Reveals the Areas of His Game He’s Aiming to Improve
Warriors wing and 2022 All-Star Andrew Wiggins joined legendary baller Vince Carter on The VC Show recently. And during the course of their conversation, the former No. 1 overall pick revealed the facets of his game that he’s looking to shore up this offseason.
“Shooting, you know, shooting off the dribble,” Wiggins told Carter. “The left hand, getting that stronger ball handling.”
For the record, Wiggins was actually one of the Dubs’ steadiest hands as a jump-shooter last season. The former No. 1 pick actually connected on a team-best 39.3% of his three-point attempts in ’21-22. However, his conversion rate dipped to 37% on attempts 10 feet away from the hoop out to just inside the three-point line.
Nevertheless, Carter believes that Wiggins has what it takes to improve.
“Just put it all together,” Carter responded. “Just the ultimate player. Just put it all together. You can do it all. I did.”
READ NEXT: