Since the start of the season, the Warriors have only lost one game, and this is in Green's absence. According to Cleaning the Glass's big data analysis, the Warriors will have a 64-win record, and they are a top-10 team on both offensive and defensive ends, with 8th in offense and 7th in defense, and the long-range shot for all this is not Curry, but the new "sixth man" Chris Paul.
Of course, Stephen Curry was the leader of all this improvement, and he played at an MVP level again, but the player with the highest plus/minus on the team was none other than their brilliant new "sixth man" Chris Paul.
Paul has had numerous victories throughout his career. Now, he's back off the bench and hasn't been at his best, shooting just 38 percent from the field and 1 of 19 from three-point range.
[Chris Paul breathes new life into the "number wins" approach]
In the heyday of the Warriors, Steve Kerr had his team live with the slogan "Numbers to Win." Yes, the Warriors have an otherworldly star like Curry, but for now they still rely on bench depth and everyone's contribution to win games.
Last year, Cole's strategy failed completely. Jordan Poole is a huge negative in both on-court/off-court stats, with Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody unable to replace the contributions of Otto Porter Jr. and Nemanja Belij, and Gary Payton II struggling with injuries after re-signing on deadline day.
When Curry came off the court, the bench had the worst performance. According to Basketball-Reference, the Warriors scored 2.2 more points per 100 possessions in the regular season and 14.1 more points per 100 possessions in the playoffs.
At the moment, Paul has tackled this issue and turned it into one of the team's biggest strengths. The same on-court/off-court stats show that when Curry is off the court this year, they can lead the team by more than 26 points per 100 possessions.
Paul makes every player on the bench get the ball in their favorite position, making them even better. Payton's finishing ability under the basket isn't quite as good as it could be, but he puts in more effort every day. Dario Saric has turned into a very dangerous number five player. Moody and Kuminga also played their best in their short careers.
Paul was brought in to limit the Warriors' turnovers, which have been the Warriors' Achilles' heel for years. Paul has done that with ease right now, averaging 8.2 assists and just 1.2 turnovers per game. Under Paul's decision, the Warriors have risen from last year's No. 1 in turnovers to 19th this season.