Building for the Future: Klay Thompson & Ekpe Udoh

 

After getting smacked at home by the Memphis Grizzlies onWednesday, the Warriors record has fallen to 15-21 on the season. They are currently 13^th in the Western Conference out of 15 teams.  They have the 10^th worst record in the NBA right now, so they probably will be just good enough to lose their 1^st round draft pick in this summer’s draft.  I predicted something along these lines when the lockout ended, and then dwelled on it again and again in the interim.  Trust me when I say that while I absolutely love being right, this is one of the rare exceptions where I would be more than happy to be dead wrong.

However, in the interest of trying to put myself in a better place mentally, I’m going to focus on the two positives that have come out of this season that should help the Warriors a bit in the future: Klay Thompson and Ekpe Udoh.

Now, Ekpe and Klay aren’t the only positives this year; David Lee isn’t as blatantly stealing money this year as last, Nate Robinson was a solid find for the league minimum, Dominic McGuire is an astoundingly good defensive player, and the Lou Amundson-for-Brandon Rush deal is the best trade the Warriors have made since they shipped out Murphy and Dunleavy for Al Harrington and Stephen Jackson.

The problem is, none of these deals figure to have much impact on the future of the team.  Lee is the same player as last year, just scoring and rebounding a bit better. He’s still the same defensive liability and still doesn’t give the Warriors consistent scoring from the post.  McGuire, Rush, and Robinson are all free agents at the end of the year, so there’s a very good chance that contenders will see how productive they’ve been and scoop them up.

Thompson and Udoh, though?  Both are locked in for a couple years, and give Warriors dimensions they haven’t had, and may be the pieces necessary to finally shift things for this team.

With Udoh, the new look he brings is obvious: Defense.  Udoh has proven to be a very good, and potentially elite, post defender.  He forces tough shots out of whoever he guards, does an excellent job protecting the rim, and is a fantastic help defender, getting the lions share of his blocks flying in from the weakside to bail out Golden State’s weak perimeter defenders.  There is a reason that he has the best +/- of any player on the Warriors this season, and almost doublesup the second best.

The exciting part about Udoh is the flashes of an offensive game he’s shown when he’s been given extended minutes.  By no means will Ekpe ever be an offensive juggernaut, but he has also shown that he’s not Deandre Jordan (who, shockingly, has made only ONE shot outside of the paint in his 3 year NBA career. Seriously). He has shown pieces of a potentially reliable elbow jumper, as well as some fairly respectable post moves and, more importantly, a willingness to actually go and execute them. Over his last 10 games, which is roughly how long he’s been getting legitimate minutes, he’s averaged 8.3 points a game.  Considering this is only his 2^nd pro season, there is no reason to believe that he can’t become a 10-12 point a game scorer in the next couple years.  If he can give that level of offensive production with his current defensive contributions, you’ll be looking at a more than respectable 2-way post player, something the Warriors haven’t had in a while now.

What Thompson brings is a little more subtle. On the surface, he looks exactly like what we already have too much of: Guards who can score but can’t guard anybody.  But if you look a little bit deeper, Klay brings a skill set that will allow the Warriors personnel flexibility in the coming years. The main thing is, Klay is big.  At 6’7”, he has elite size for a Shooting Guard and can legitimately play some Small Forward if the situation dictates it.  This allows him to be the potential replacement at either SG or SF.  More importantly, his game on the court is the polar opposite of the starting backcourt.  Where the starters tend to dominate the ball to be most effective, Thompson is actually better when he plays off the ball at this point in his career. He knows how to use screens, where to spot up for jumpers, and how to properly space the court.  In general, he’s just a smart basketball player.  His ability to successfully play off the ball and adapt to the teams style makes him a valuable piece for the future.

Ekpe and Klay may not be enough to save the 2011-2012 season, but they have emerged as two pieces that should help the Warriors construct a truly competitive team in the future.  Its not much, but at least it’s a step in the right direction.

You can follow Andy on twitter at @Amohoop34