Jonas Jerebko, Jordan Bell and Kevon Looney make major contributions to Golden State win
OAKLAND — After watching superstar forward Kevin Durant limp into the locker room late in the third quarter of Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr called for help from his bench.
“We’ve got to try to mix and match the lineups and try to find some minutes and contributions where we haven’t had them so far.” Kerr said. “Guys will get some opportunities, who haven’t had an opportunity yet.”
With both DeMarcus Cousins and Durant laid up with injury, the Warriors clinched in six games over the Houston Rockets, in large part thanks to their bench. In Golden State’s 116-94 win over the Portland Trailblazers in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night, the Warriors again saw significant contributions from a trio of bench bigs: Kevon Looney, Jonas Jerebko and Jordan Bell.
“They were great,” Kerr said. “Looney has been great throughout the playoffs, every round. Jonas and Jordan have played sporadically in the first two rounds. Both guys came in and gave us a big lift today.”
In Looney’s case, his contributions have been required all season as they Warriors were forced to play through injuries at the center position.
As center DeMarcus Cousins rehabilitated a torn achilles tendon early this season, young Damian Jones — in the midst of having a breakout year — went down with a torn pectoral muscle, thrusting Looney back into the starting lineup for a portion of season.
After Cousins’ return in January, Looney was relegated back to the bench. After Cousins went down in Game 2 against the Clippers with a torn right quadriceps, Looney again saw more minutes.
