Kerr's lineup change idea came from Warriors 'video guy' in 3 a.m. text
In his first year on the job, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has been lauded for both his tactics and his open-minded approach. He's surrounded himself with quality assistants he trusts, and has shown a willingness to defer to them when in need of fresh ideas.
Game 4 of the NBA Finals offered up another example. After insisting for days his starting lineup was set in stone - you don't mess with 80-18, he said after Game 1 - Kerr made a liar of himself and announced a last-minute change before Thursday night's pivotal contest.
Trailing the Cleveland Cavaliers 2-1 in the series, Kerr inserted Andre Iguodala into the starting five. Not for fellow swingman Harrison Barnes - who's been struggling - but for starting center and All-Defensive second teamer Andrew Bogut.
It was risky, setting the Warriors up to get mauled on the boards - and indeed they did - but the thinking went that the super-small lineup would allow Golden State to control tempo and get back to playing their game. It worked like gangbusters. Iguodala had his best game of the season, Lebron James and the Cavs wore down, and the Warriors ran away with a 21-point win.
The idea, though, wasn't Kerr's, but that of 28-year-old Nick U'Ren, according to Sports Illustrated's Lee Jenkins. U'Ren's official title is special assistant to the head coach and manager of advanced scouting, but other Warriors coaches call him "a de facto video guy."
U'Ren said he got the idea late Wednesday night while watching video of the 2014 NBA Finals between James's Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs. He noted that in Game 3 of that series, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich downsized by subbing Tiago Splitter out for Boris Diaw in the starting lineup, turning the tide of the series.
U'Ren then called Warriors assistant coach Luke Walton and convinced him that a comparable move could bear similar results for Golden State, Walton texted Kerr with the idea at 3 a.m., and Thursday morning the whole staff met at their hotel to do a cost-benefit analysis. Kerr went for it.
"It was his decision," Walton said. "It’s always his decision. But this is why he’s the greatest boss in the world. We can all make suggestions, even a video guy, and he’ll seriously consider them."
Much like how Kerr took up assistant and defensive specialist Ron Adams' idea to stick Bogut on Tony Allen in the conference semis against the Memphis Grizzlies. It was a move the Warriors made in the exact same spot, trailing 2-1 in the series, playing completely out of rhythm, and in desperate need of an adjustment. They went on to win the next three games by a combined 50 points.
"I don’t know if this is gonna work the whole series," Kerr told Grantland's Zach Lowe after the game. "But it was a good effort tonight, and now we reshuffle the deck."