Warriors' three biggest surprises from first half of 2018-19 NBA season

Editor's note: Grant Liffmann is the co-host of Warriors Outsiders, which airs on NBC Sports Bay Area 90 minutes before each home game and 60 minutes after every game. Each week, Grant will drop his Outsider Observation on the state of the Dubs.

You know the NBA All-Star Break actually is not the halfway mark of the season, right? In fact, it's not even close. 

Going into the break, the Warriors will have played 57 games, the most in franchise history before the All-Star Game, which means at the conclusion of the break, the Warriors will only have 25 games left before it is playoffs time. The "dog days" as Draymond described this part of the season, is awfully short this year.

So as the team plays in its final week before heading into break, let's look at some of the "first half" surprises.

The return of "Regular Season Iguodala"

We all know "Playoff Iguodala" by now. Since joining the Warriors, Andre Iguodala in the playoffs has shot 48 percent from the field and 35 percent from deep, while playing exceptional defense. He even won himself an NBA Finals MVP (something that Steph Curry is yet to do). 

But many don't realize that Iguodala's regular season numbers since becoming a Warrior have been shockingly similar. Iguodala is shooting a little over 48 percent from the field, and just a little under 35 percent from deep over 394 games played.

So why then would Iguodala's performance this season be any bit of a surprise? 

Last year was arguably the worst regular season of Iguodala's career and it came at age 34. Iguodala shot an acceptable 46 percent from the field, but a surprisingly poor 28 percent from deep. It seemed as if Iguodala had lost a bit of his normal impressive explosiveness and athleticism.

The Warriors were insistent on fans and media staying patient throughout the regular season, subtly implying that Andre was keeping his body rested and ready for a playoff surge. And they were right to wait. Iguodala awoke in the playoffs to shoot 49 percent from the field and 38 percent from long range. 

So heading into this regular season, many (including us Outsiders) cautioned fans to be patient with Iguodala. Do not judge his game until the Warriors reach the playoffs. That warning ended up being unnecessary.

Iguodala has been everything the Warriors could have asked for, shooting 49 percent overall and 35 percent from three-point land. At age 35, he is back to flying high on fastbreaks and playing the kind of smothering defense that we have come to know throughout his career.

He has even been surprisingly available this season, only missing six games so far, after missing 18 last season. 

Now the only question is, will his activity and play in the long regular season take a toll on him come playoff time? Only time will tell. But I'd bet "Playoff Iguodala" will be just fine.

One "Mc" for another

You know who was supposed to be a big part of this roster this season? None other than Pat McCaw of the Cleveland Caval- uh, I mean, Toronto Raptors.

To start the season, the Warriors needed someone to fill in for that spot in the time-being until McCaw was ready to return to the team. In stepped Alfonzo McKinnie.

McKinnie does not play the same role nor position as McCaw. He's an aggressive rebounder, always attacking the glass or rim. He defends larger wings pretty well, every now and then struggling to guard quicker players. He also is a solid spot-up three-point shooter, excelling in the corners.

McCaw was practically the opposite of all of those things, so subbing in one for another does not make complete sense. But the roster spot was open, and McKinnie won it. 

McKinnie is shooting 48 percent from the field, and 35 percent from deep, though he has cooled off a lot since the beginning of the season. He provides the Warriors some youthful depth and energy, while playing within his role and not demanding more. He also is on a minimum contract for this season, as well as next if the team desires, which makes him that much more valuable to a team paying absurd amounts of luxury tax.

He has been a much-welcomed surprise.

Seamless Chemistry

No I'm not talking about locker room chemistry. We all know there were some bumps in the road so far this season. Instead I'm talking about the offensive chemistry between the All-Star starting five.

I, for one, was very cautious in my approach to judging how they made the offense work with so many ball dominant players. I figured we would have to be very patient when analyzing their play, finding the subtle nuances to see where the potential can be, and trying to see through the glaring rust and missteps while building chemistry.

None of that was needed.

With the return of DeMarcus Cousins, the ball has been moving better than ever. The Warriors are racking up assists with great efficiency, and doing it with relatively low reckless turnovers. They are putting up gaudy numbers, using the newfound spacing and even pushing the ball faster in transition (which is surprising considering Cousins' big frame and lumbering stride).

[RELATED: Warriors' starting lineup is the worst in NBA in one specific area]

Boogie himself has been surprisingly more conditioned and less rusty than expected. The team is firing on all cylinders offensively. 

They still have some work to do finding their defensive chemistry. That will come in time, as well as when naturally the Warriors start putting in more effort on that end when games mean more. That has not come as a surprise.

Scoring 121 points per game and winning nine of 10 while sweeping a tough road trip since Boogie's return, that to me was a little surprising.