Innovative Design: Dubs have Nuggets chasing ghosts before Steph drains 3

The Golden State Warriors are the epitome of team basketball.

Golden State trounced the Denver Nuggets by a score of 127-108 on Saturday, shooting 55 percent from the field and 45 percent from deep while equaling a season high in assists with 37.

It was yet another masterclass by the reigning champions, who are now shooting an absurd 52.6 percent from the field as a team through 10 games. They're assisting one another on 70.2 percent of their baskets and lead the league by a full 10 points per 100 possessions over the second-best team.

This one assist from Saturday's match illustrates what makes Golden State unstoppable. Everyone can pass, everyone can dribble, everyone is constantly moving off the ball, and everyone can shoot.

1. Early offense

The Warriors start their offense with a high pick-and-roll between Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant, and they do so immediately. They're already setting the gears in motion with 20 seconds left on the shot clock, which forces the Nuggets to defend and keep their focus for longer.

Wilson Chandler is forced to show high against Curry since he's always a threat to trigger from deep off a screen. That leaves room for Durant to slip into space.

2. Where's the next pass?

Curry finds Durant rolling to the basket, but the Nuggets sniff it out. Paul Millsap makes the right call by leaving Draymond Green to help at the rim, but Durant doesn't settle for a contested layup.

Instead, he spots the next pass with Green diving into space since his defender is gone. That forces the Nuggets to make yet another read.

3. Perfect defense isn't enough

The Nuggets make the right read once again, with Nikola Jokic ditching the mostly inert Kevon Looney to meet Green in the paint. But again, the Warriors don't settle for a contested look and reset for something better.

Green finds Klay Thompson in the corner, but Gary Harris is right on the spot and crowds Thompson upon the catch. Now the Warriors are stuck, or so the Nuggets think.

4. Perpetual motion

The Warriors rearrange themselves to space the floor. Durant and Green fan out to the 3-point line for maximum spacing, while Looney hides in the dunker spot.

Thompson resets to Curry at the top of the floor, where he has the quickness advantage against Chandler. Thanks to the early offense, there are still 14 seconds left on the clock, which means there's more than enough time to attack again.

5. Gravity kills

Curry is too dangerous to be left open from anywhere. Chandler is caught flat-footed, and Curry's darting drive to the rim attracts the attention of three defenders who flock to the paint.

This is where the Nuggets are beat. They're completely scrambled by this bit of dribble penetration and there are shooters everywhere. Curry sets everything in motion with a bounce pass to Durant.

6. Never relax

Durant takes one hard dribble to get the step on Millsap, which forces Chandler to help. Green anticipates the action and relocates to an open area where he can attack.

Green could have simply taken the three, but he sees the next pass with Curry sneaking off into the corner. Green knows he can beat Chandler to the spot, which will occupy Jokic to help in the paint.

7. Options everywhere

Chandler does rotate in time, but so does Jokic, which leaves a three-on-two advantage on the weak side. Green has his head up and sees the floor beautifully.

He can either find Durant open for three against a back pick from Thompson, or he can whip a cross-court pass to Curry in the corner. Harris is only one man, and he cannot cover both.

Pick your poison: Both Durant and Curry are hitting over 40 percent from deep and they're automatic when open. The Nuggets are dead.

8. Checkmate

Green picks out Curry, who's all alone in the corner. Harris doesn't even have enough time to put his hands up. The closest thing Curry sees to a shot contest is his own teammate JaVale McGee on the opposite side of the floor, and the center is already celebrating the three points before the shot goes up.

Curry nails the three, of course. That caps off a seven-pass sequence that featured two drives to the rim, two basket cuts, and a handful of good shots that were passed up for the greatest shot in basketball: Curry open from the short corner for three.

Here's the whole play in totality.

(Photos courtesy: NBA.com)