Warriors' bench silencing critics after slow start to season

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After a slow start to the 2022-23 NBA season, the Warriors' bench has risen to the challenge, providing stability on a team that is anything but. 

Warriors guard Donte DiVincenzo spoke to NBC Sports Bay Area's Kerith Burke, Chris Mullin and Monte Poole on "Warriors Postgame Live" after Golden State's 135-126 win over the Washington Wizards on Monday night at Chase Center and was asked about the success the bench was having as of late.

"Honestly, to be real, we heard all the talk at the beginning of the year," DiVincenzo said. "And we had to really get together and lockdown and we had to start playing better. And JaMychal [Green] was really great tonight, Ty [Jerome] was really solid.

"When we can hold it down for that second unit, when the starters come back in, they can do their thing and blow it open."

DiVincenzo finished the game with 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field and 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Green scored 14 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting from the field and 4-of-4 from 3-point land with five rebounds, while Jerome chipped in nine points with seven rebounds on 4-of-5 shooting from the field. 

Postgame, Jerome was asked about the bench's turnaround this season and discussed how in-game adjustments have helped the unit maintain its focus. 

"I think everyone's just playing harder. In the first quarter they were like 20 of their first 28 or something like that and Draymond [Green] kind of lit into us during a timeout," Jerome explained. "From there, Donte was picking up from full court and [Jonathan Kuminga] was picking up from full court.

"Those guys are high-level defenders and from there, it allows us behind the defense to be more engaged, pull over in our rotations earlier, be better and when we get stops, we're tough to guard in the open court. When we don't get stops, we got to walk the ball up the court and we're a whole different team."

Warriors coach Steve Kerr believes the adjustment to a new team was one reason why some new faces off the bench struggled early in the season. After months of tinkering and experimenting, Kerr finally has consistent rotations to work with. 

"I think you're talking about Donte, JaMychal and Ty all being new to the team so early in the season, they're just trying to figure out how we play and terminology and all of that stuff," Kerr said. "I think we've paired down the rotation some and we have a better sense of who we should play together and what combinations we can get to. Then I think just over time they've gotten more and more confident. They're playing at a really high level."

"The bench was great. Donte and JaMychal both played really well. I thought Moses Moody changed the game in the first half with his energy, we were lifeless for much of the first half defensively and they were getting anything they wanted and I thought Moses' energy was great. But JaMychal was fantastic and Donte hit some big shots and did his usual job defensively."

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While Curry remains out until after the All-Star break with a leg injury, the Warriors will rely on their bench now more than ever. 

And it appears that they have embraced the challenge. 

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