Warriors Notes: Durant, Clark, Pachulia

The path that the Warriors took to emerge from the middle and transform into perennial contenders can be traced back to their ability to develop players, Nick Kosmider of the Denver Post writes.

The Warriors are on the verge of a dynasty, Kosmider says, and attributes it to the fact that the club has stuck with players they drafted and watched them morph into superstars. Well, that and a little bit of luck.

Kosmider mentions Stephen Curry specifically, a player once cast aside as injury prone and the shrewd drafting decisions to add Klay Thompson at No. 11 in 2011 and then Draymond Green at No. 35 in 2012.

  • After failing to catch on with the Jazz four years ago, Ian Clark has carved out a role for himself with the Warriors, Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News writes. The reserve is averaging 7.2 points per game as a member of the Dubs’ second unit this season, not bad for somebody who got cut by a team that won 25 games in his rookie season.
  • Recently retired forward Paul Pierce questioned the competitive nature of Kevin Durant, comparing the forward’s decision to join the Warriors to a kid’s decision to join a gang of bullies after getting beaten up. Chase Hughes of CSN Mid-Atlantic has the details (and video).
  • There’s no denying the rivalry between the Warriors and Cavaliers, even when the conversation shifts to players who only joined the two organizations this season. “Obviously when you play against somebody and it’s the third time in a row and split the seasons and championships, they don’t like each other,” Warriors center Zaza Pachulia told Josh Dubow of the Associated Press.
  • Speaking of Zaza Pachulia, the Warriors big man is the last eligible player that was selected in the 2004 expansion draft, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes.
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