OAKLAND–Preseason games aren’t supposed to matter, but it’s hard not to come away impressed by the play of Warriors’ rookie Jordan Bell who stuffed the stat sheet and finished with a double double in Golden State’s 117-106 victory over Sacramento on Friday.
Bell was all over the floor, leaping for a first quarter block, soaring for first half rebounds and ultimately stealing a Zaza Pachulia rebound and put back with a tip in dunk in the third quarter. The 38th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, Bell looks like the latest Warriors’ draft steal and it’s only the preseason.
After the game though, Warriors’ head coach Steve Kerr remained a bit guarded about his excitement over Bell’s early play. The Oregon product is showing plenty of promise, but as Bell was quick to point out after Friday’s contest, Sacramento played without veterans Zach Randolph and Vince Carter.
“Obviously it’s preseason,” Bell said. “VC didn’t play, Randolph didn’t play, so I mean obviously this isn’t exactly what it’s going to be like, but it’s getting my feet wet so it’s somewhat close to it.”
After the Warriors’ Wednesday practice, a few days after Bell scored 11 points in seven minutes against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Kerr said that the rookie would play in “certain matchups,” but he wasn’t ready to make Bell a regular part of the Warriors’ rotation. After Friday’s effort and another standout outing from Bell, Kerr again offered the 6-foot-9 forward praise, but also reminded everyone that Golden State is deep along its front line.
“The NBA season always has a way of giving everybody a chance whether it’s injury or matchups, whatever,” Kerr said. “If a guy is good enough, he’s going to play and we have a lot of talent on the front line. A lot of centers who are kind of different, do different things but they’re all very effective. Jordan will get his chance at some point and he’s going to be a really good pro and we’re really excited about him, but the game gets a lot harder. The preseason is a different deal. He did a hell of a job tonight, and he’s got a lot of growth in him.”
For Bell to play frequent minutes, he’ll have to find a lot of favorable matchups early on in his career. At this point, Zaza Pachulia, David West and JaVale McGee are all ahead of the rookie on the depth chart at center, and though he can fit in at the four, there aren’t a slew of lineup combinations that would allow the Warriors to play effectively if Bell lines up with another true big.
Nevertheless, it’s increasingly clear that Bell has unique skills that separate him from other post players, and attributes that make him a more enticing option for Kerr over the likes of Kevon Looney and Damian Jones.
The Warriors want to be cautious. And it’s smart to be cautious. But eventually, Bell is going to force his way onto the floor. Just like Patrick McCaw did. Just like Draymond Green did. Golden State has a knack for hitting on second round draft picks, and though it’s still early, Bell looks like another success.
“He has feel,” Kerr said. “He has a knack for the ball. When it goes up, he seems to be at the right place in the right time. He’s a good passer. He had four assists. We play a lot of our offense through the elbows so he fits our style. He catches the ball and he makes good reads. He can make a backdoor pass and he swung the ball to Nick, I think it was him or Patrick, to the corner coming off a pick and roll, kind of looked like Draymond making that play. So he’s got real awareness but then athleticism to go with it and it’s a good combination.”
