The Warriors Without Steph Curry Are Bad, But The Pelicans Are Still Worse | Defector

"Steph Curry's mere presence can mask so much mediocrity. As long as he's on court, the Golden State Warriors' offense crackles with possibility. The threat of Curry getting the ball with a few inches of space keeps any defense in permanent panic, and he is masterful at using his teammates as screeners and passers to pry open what little space he needs. The threes splash, and the offense looks like a dream."

"It quickly becomes clear that the other Warriors on the floor have a collective vertical leap of 80 inches and 1.5 functional jump shots, and cannot actually pool together their skills to make the ball go into the hoop. Curry made magic with them, but without him, they are totally inert. They might as well be Easter Island statues plunked on the court for him to use as screens."

"Before Saturday night's game against the New Orleans Pelicans, ESPN's Anthony Slater observed that the Warriors had an offensive rating of 118.2 with Curry on the floor, and 105.2 with him off the floor. That would be the difference between an offense ranked sixth or 30th in the NBA. Though Curry's injury was reportedly less severe than it initially seemed, he'll be sitting out at least a week."

Steph Curry's on-court presence elevates the Warriors' offense by creating constant defensive panic and exploiting tiny pockets of space. Teammates primarily function as screeners and passers, enabling Curry's shots to fall and the offense to hum. Without Curry on the floor, the roster's scoring and athletic limitations become stark, rendering the team inert and unable to sustain offense. Statistical on-off splits show a drop from a 118.2 offensive rating with Curry to 105.2 without him, equating to a shift from a top-six offense to last place. A right quad injury forces Curry to miss at least a week, exposing those weaknesses.

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