The Warriors may have found their new ‘Death Lineup’ in the Nuggets win

SAN FRANCISCO – According to Steve Kerr, jumbo lineup used by the Golden State Warriors late in the fourth quarter and in overtime was a combination the coaching staff hadn’t previously discussed using before the game. But with Stephen Curry as the only traditional guard on the floor, three forwards Draymond GreenWith Jimmy Butler, Jonathan Cumminga and Al Horford under center, the Warriors were able to close out the Denver Nuggets 137-131 in overtime.

The Dubs need all 42 of Curry’s points to defend himself Aaron Gordon’s career-high 50 points on 10-of-11 from behind the arc. The two-time MVP hit the game-tying 3-pointer with 21.4 seconds left in the game. Curry got the Warriors offense humming in overtime with a 3-pointer to open the period, but Gordon answered right back with a 3-pointer of his own. That’s when the jumbo lineup really got big for the Warriors.

“It felt like the real thing,” Kerr said after the game. “They were with us the whole game; they shot 54%, (Aaron) Gordon 50. We couldn’t stop them, so we wanted to win the game, we felt like we had to get our best defensive lineup on the floor, our most athletic lineup.”

Steve Kerr of the Warriors said the final lineup was a combination they hadn’t discussed before tonight.

“It felt like the real deal. They were with us the whole game, shooting 54%, Gordon with 50.”

Quoted Terri Stotts and Chris DeMarco behind the idea. pic.twitter.com/il2Oh27c8s

— Kenzo Fukuda (@kenzofuku) October 24, 2025

With the big tandem of Green-Horford, the Warriors were able to match the Gordon-Nikola Jokic combination that destroyed them all night. Previously, Kerr slowed down his minutes to always have one guy on the floor to guard Jokic and keep Horford’s minutes to a minimum. But in overtime, with a win in sight and Horford taking the night off the next game in Portland, Kerr put in his chips and matched size with size to rob the Nuggets of a Gordon-Jokic big-on-big pick-and-roll.

The offensive side of that lineup

One of the reasons Kerr and the coaching staff likely never discussed that lineup before was because of spacing concerns. While Curry and Horford are great scorers, Cumminga, Butler and Green are streaky shooters at best. Not to mention the lack of a traditional guard next to Curry to help run the offense. After the game, Kerr explained the initial concerns about the jumbo lineup and the thought process behind ignoring those potential problems.

“It was during a timeout. Terry (Stotts) suggested it, Chris DeMarco suggested it, too,” Kerr said, crediting his assistant coaches.

“They just thought with Steph (Curry) going with Jimmy (Butler) there, we were going to score. That was my biggest concern: Can we execute? And they just reminded me that we have Steph and Jimmy and they’re going to find a way to score. And they did. It was fantastic to watch a defense with that size and length.”

Curry and Butler figured it out, the latter hitting a huge 3-pointer to make it six with 40.7 left in the game. The fact that the Warriors were still able to generate quality offense with that group speaks volumes for the potential of that lineup. Size and athleticism, paired with spacing, is something they lacked last season. It’s the reason why they got beat in the playoffs against twice the size of the Rockets’ lineup.

“We had a lot of guys step up and make big plays,” Kerr continued. “Al (Horford) knocking down shots, JK (Jonathan Cumminga) with a steal, a layup, a big layup. It was really fun to watch a group that had never played together close out a game against one of the best teams in the league.”

The potential of the jumbo line-up is thriving

It’s too early to tell if that lineup moving forward will be their secret sauce, so to speak.

In the past, each of the Warriors’ championship teams featured some variation of what has been aptly named the “Lineup of Death.” The first time it was Curry, Green, Klay Thompson, Harrison Barnes and Andre Iguodala. When Kevin Durant came to the Bay, he complemented Barnes and that lineup became nearly unbeatable. And in 2022, the Warriors won a title with Andrew Wiggins and Kevon Looney in a group with a golden trio (and the occasional Jordan Poole “Poole Party” closing lineup).

In recent years, they have lacked that kind of finals lineup. But with a star in Jimmy Butler in the fold, and Al Horford spacing the floor, and Cummings fully committed to the program, they may have found something. At the very least, another option Kerr could turn to, depending on the situation. For Green, the key to that lineup was proper spacing and getting jumps.

“I thought it was an opportunity to be the end lineup, or the starting lineup, or the middle of the lineup to play,” Green said. “But I think what worked was we had the right spacing. (We) were able to make a lot of stops, we switched a lot, kept bodies on bodies. That group was really able to get rebounds. So down the stretch, they had one shot, they didn’t make it, we went on runs. So I think defensively it was good that every center was good for us to let us make plays then.

It’s only two games into the season, but the Warriors look like they’re starting to put the pieces of the puzzle together.