Marquese Chriss Has Another Chance in Golden State

Lack of Depth

Golden State’s other second round pick Eric Paschall is fitting in nicely. Kerr had this to say about the rookie forward out of Villanova to NBC Sports Bay Area:

“Really excited about Eric,” Kerr said. “The strength, explosiveness. He may be undersized from a height standpoint, but he’s got long arms, so he makes up for some of that. To me, he fits right in, maybe even stands out on an NBA floor athletically from a strength and explosion standpoint.”

That leaves three other healthy bigs alongside the rookie on the preseason roster. One is a second year player, Omari Spellman, who was acquired from Atlanta in the offseason. Another is Kavion Pippen, the nephew of Scottie Pippen who will most likely not make the team. The other is Marquese Chriss.

Chriss was selected 8th overall by the Sacramento Kings in the 2016 NBA Draft. He has widely been considered a bust up to this point in his career, failing to average double digit scoring in a single season. He’s also played for three different teams already. Regardless, he has an opportunity to prove he is still worthy of playing in this league with the Warriors this season. 

Droppin’ Dimes

Despite it just being preseason action, Chriss has impressed thus far. He posted a double-double in last night’s loss to the Lakers with 14 points and 11 rebounds. He also dished out four assists, his third straight game with as many assists. 

It’s no secret a lot of the Warriors offensive sets rely on timing and crisp passing. Chriss has shown an ability to keep up with the fast-paced Golden State offense. Check out this nice touch-pass to Stephen Curry for a corner three-point shot last night:

Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle reported a few days ago that Steve Kerr called Chriss “the surprise of camp”.

Fitting In

My “eye test” has graded out Chriss well throughout the preseason so far. Again, the key word here is preseason. Still, there is something to be said with how well Chriss has gelled with this Warrior offense. It’s certainly not an easy one to just pick up and run with, however, Chriss has more than held his own. 

Not only has the passing of Marquese impressed, but so has his IQ in the pick-and-roll. Watch this high screen set between Chriss and D’Angelo Russell and how well it is executed. 

The Warriors will rely heavily on perimeter scoring this season between Curry and Russell. However, simply “going small” all the time will no longer work as well as it has in previous regimes. There is no Kevin Durant. There is no Andre Iguodala. This team will need production from their frontcourt. With injuries already making things thin, the emergence of Marquese Chriss would certainly bail Golden State out a bit in that regard.