The Golden State Warriors lost a key part of their backcourt in order to clear cap-space to sign “Iggy”: Jarrett Jack. With Jack’s departure, the Warriors needed of a strong backup point guard for Stephen Curry, and to fill that gap they signed point guard Toney Douglas during the offseason. At 6-foot-2 and 185-pounds, Douglas is smaller than Jack (who’s 6’3 and 197), but still plays tough, physical defense.
During his four years in the NBA Douglas has played inconsistently. He’s said that his best sport is actually baseball, which hinders his ability to realize his full basketball potential. Nevertheless, Douglas is a dedicated player; he puts in long hours at the gym and in the video room in order to improve.
What will Douglas bring to the Warriors?
He’s a versatile guard and has the ability to be a strong backup for Curry. Although his statistics weren’t impressive last year – 7.5 ppg, 2.1 apg, and 1.9 rpg—his box scores don’t show the whole picture.
Douglas’ recent stats don’t look like much when compared to Jack’s —last year Jack put up 12.9 ppg, 5.6 apg, and 3.1 rpg—but Jack played 10 more minutes per game than Douglas did. There’s one area where Douglas completely surpasses Jack, though: defense.
Last season, in the three games where the Warriors played against Douglas (twice while Douglas was with the Sacramento Kings, and once during his stint with the Houston Rockets) Douglas held Steph Curry to 1 for 7 shooting when the two matched up. Douglas averaged three steals per game, while Jack averaged a mere 0.9.
Don’t expect Douglas to immediately take on the responsibility that Jack had last season. Douglas’ role will be to come in for Curry whenever Curry needs a break. If Douglas plays well and shows he can lock down opposing point guards, his minutes and responsibilities will steadily increase over the course of the season.
This cover will help ensure that Curry stays healthy and his ankles don’t become an issue this season—Curry’s ankle problems have been a recurring theme for the Warriors. Douglas can be an important player, and his role is vital to Curry’s health, but he won’t be as essential for the Warriors as Jarrett Jack was last year.
Do you want to "get to know" more of the new Warriors? Follow the links below:
Get to know your Warriors: Andre Iguodala
Get to know your Warriors: Seth Curry
Get to know your Warriors: Marreese Speights
Get to know your Warriors: Jermaine O'Neal
Get to know your Warriors: Nemanja Nedovic
Get to know your Warriors: Ognjen Kuzmic
Get to know your Warriors: Dewayne Dedmon
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