Famous FC Barcelona Tactic Influenced Warriors, Steph Curry Says
The Golden State Warriors have become a modern basketball dynasty under the leadership of Stephen Curry. The team clinched NBA championships in 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2022, proving nearly unstoppable at their best.
Curry credits much of their success to head coach Steve Kerr, who joined in 2014 and introduced offensive changes inspired by FC Barcelona's tiki-taka style, emphasizing quick ball movement and fluid positioning.
Steve Kerr's Influence and the Tiki-Taka Philosophy
From the start, Kerr aimed to adjust the way the Warriors create shots, teaching the team to rely on the ball's movement rather than set plays.
"He was like, 'I just wanna make a couple of tweaks to the way that we're creating shots,'" Curry said in the Mind the Game podcast with LeBron James and Steve Nash.
"Once we got in training camp, he showed a clip of Barcelona tiki-taka, and he was talking about that as a philosophy of how we're gonna create shots, how we're gonna keep things simple, make the defense have to make a million decisions in a possession, so that you can find the right shot," he added.
"It took a minute to be comfortable with not calling a play and just letting the ball kind of dictate where you're supposed to be."
This approach encourages constant movement and decision-making pressure on the defense, allowing the Warriors to find high-quality shot opportunities.
Author's summary: Steve Kerr adapted FC Barcelona’s tiki-taka principles for basketball, teaching the Warriors to use fluid ball movement and positional play to disrupt defenses and create optimal shots.