Indiana Hoosiers/Golden State Warriors

[Feathery 4,005]

Crean wants to play an NBA style and we don't have much depth up front. This is very similar to Golden State last year. Was watching highlights of the Warriors and they are #1 in the NBA in offensive and defensive efficiency. I hope Crean has been studying their defensive philosophy and principles and implementing them this offseason/preseason.

[Kepner 1,268]

Crean wants to play an NBA style and we don't have much depth up front. This is very similar to Golden State last year. Was watching highlights of the Warriors and they are #1 in the NBA in offensive and defensive efficiency. I hope Crean has been studying their defensive philosophy and principles and implementing them this offseason/preseason.

The Warriors weren't thin up front though. They had Bogut (7'), Ezeli (6' 11"), and Speights (6' 10") and David Lee (6' 10")on the bench. Our tallest player is 6' 10".  What the Warriors did best though is take advantage of mismatches. They started using smaller lineups in the finals because the Cavs were the ones that were thin up front and their bigs couldnt guard Iguodala and Draymond on the perimeter. If you watched the Warriors whole season and playoff run you will see that Bogut, Ezeli, and Speights played big roles. Azalea and Speights still play big roles for them. The Warriors also have some terrific defenders on their team.Their defense created a lot of offense for them by creating fast breaks. 
Crean says he wants to play run and gun, but I have yet to see it

[Feathery 4,005]

The Warriors weren't thin up front though. They had Bogut (7'), Ezeli (6' 11"), and Speights (6' 10") and David Lee (6' 10")on the bench. Our tallest player is 6' 10". What the Warriors did best though is take advantage of mismatches. They started using smaller lineups in the finals because the Cavs were the ones that were thin up front and their bigs couldnt guard Iguodala and Draymond on the perimeter. If you watched the Warriors whole season and playoff run you will see that Bogut, Ezeli, and Speights played big roles. Azalea and Speights still play big roles for them. The Warriors also have some terrific defenders on their team.Their defense created a lot of offense for them by creating fast breaks.
Crean says he wants to play run and gun, but I have yet to see it

As a life long Warrior fan and watching them a lot last season, they are not thin up front but they rarely played more than 1 big at a time. Nevertheless the defensive principles and tactics that they displayed all season are what Crean needs to establish with his college teams.

Agree with you on Crean saying he wants to run and gun and not seeing it. The best way to play up and down is by locking down defensively and getting out on the break. It seems more often or not after a made basket we are sprinting down the court trying to beat the defense down the court. I also think the lack of defense has been a key reason consistency hasn't been achieved during his tenure. The lack of defense has also created a ceiling on how far his teams can go. Crean will never win a championship with subpar defenses. The vast majority of national champions since Kenpom started his advanced stats website, have had top 10 defensive efficiencies.

The Warriors have shown you can play championship caliber defense, even being small and at a much higher level.