Warriors’ early success gives hope for championship run

As Warriors point guard Stephen Curry stepped onto the free throw line following a technical foul in a Nov. 16 away game against the Brooklyn Nets, the Brooklyn fans began to chant “MVP” — highly unusual, considering the crowd’s home allegiance.

Curry went on to finish the night with 37 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Off the back of his stellar performance, the Warriors won 117-89.

Such successes are a stark contrast to the team’s past two seasons. The injury-plagued 2019-20 Warriors recorded the worst win-loss in the league (15-50) and they finished last in the Western Conference. The following 2020-21 season was an improvement, but the team still missed the playoffs following losses in the play-in tournament.

Now, bolstered by a resurgent Curry, who became the all-time leader in three pointers made in a Dec. 14 game against the New York Knicks, and one of the league’s deepest benches, the Warriors sit second in the West with a 42-17 record. Even better, shooting guard Klay Thompson came back on Jan. 9, reuniting the “Splash Brothers” following a 2-year hiatus due to Thompson’s ACL injury in the 2019 NBA finals and achilles tear before the start of the 2020-21 season in a pickup game. 

 

An uncertain start gives way to early success

At the start of this year’s season, the Warriors faced strong doubts, especially regarding holes in their system left by reinjured Thompson and the relatively fragile health of center Kevon Looney, who had a double hip replacement surgery soon after joining the NBA and subsequently missed a sizeable number of games due to health concerns. 

Even with lingering doubts, the Warriors saw a strong 121-114 opening night win over the Los Angeles Lakers, whose star-studded starting lineup included small forward LeBron James, power forward Anthony Davis and recently signed point guard Russell Westbrook. 

The team’s momentum continued with the team starting off 4-0 before dropping a game to the Memphis Grizzlies in a close overtime affair on Oct. 28.

Despite this loss, the Warriors continued their incredible start, rounding out their first 20 games 18-2 fueled by Curry’s MVP-caliber season; small forward Andrew Wiggins’ improvement on both ends of the floor; and the emergence of role players such as point guard Gary Payton II, who has quickly become a fan favorite with his high flying dunks, hustle and lockdown defense.

Wiggins’ improvement has been especially key; he is an all-star starter and averaging 17.7 points per game on career highs of 48.1% shooting from the field and 41.4% from the three, according to Basketball Reference. He has also transformed into an elite defender.

 

The return of Klay Thompson and James Wiseman

Though the Warriors already have the second best record in the NBA, they are only projected to get better with Thompson getting increased playing time and second-year center James Wiseman returning soon. 

Thompson returned on Jan. 9 at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers, a day many NBA fans deemed “Klay Day.” The game featured an electrifying player introduction for Thompson which gave goosebumps to casual and hardcore fans alike. In his first NBA game in 941 days, Thompson put up 17 points in 20 minutes as well as a poster dunk. 

Thompson, who has been with the team for 10 seasons, is fitting seamlessly back into the lineup. Needless to say, his sharpshooting ability is making the Warriors even more lethal on offense and opening up more space for Curry to operate.

Additionally, Wiseman will be returning soon from his meniscus injury last season; his addition will add more versatility to the Warriors’ rotations.

How Wiseman will fit back into the lineup, however, remains uncertain. Though he had a good statistical rookie season, a narrative arose that he did not fit with the team and that the Warriors might be better without him.

Although this looked to be true at times, Wiseman still showed many flashes of his elite ability to catch lobs and finish around the rim. He was a great player in the pick and roll and could play a significant role for the Warriors upon returning.

As the tallest player on the team, he can also possibly neutralize big men the Warriors have struggled to defend, such as Deandre Ayton of the Phoenix Suns and Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz. With mentoring from defensive gurus such as Green and small forward Andre Iguodala, Wiseman could make the jump to become a quality defender.

 

Warriors’ struggles at the start of January

The Warriors went 3-6 in a 9 game stretch from Jan. 5 to  Jan. 20, including back-to-back losses to the Memphis Grizzlies and Milwaukee Bucks on Jan. 11 and Jan. 13 respectively. Though it was a rough time for the team and the fans, it was not a reason to worry since the struggles were mainly due to Green’s absence and Curry’s shooting slump. 

Green is a crucial defensive leader and offense facilitator for the Warriors; the team was 5-8 in the games he hadn’t played this season as of Jan. 20. In addition, Curry was in arguably the worst shooting slump of his career, averaging just 35.9% shooting and 30.9% from three from Dec. 28 to Jan. 16, an almost 20% difference from his previous peak form.

Frustrated with his performances and the team’s recent losses, Curry kicked a chair during a timeout in the third quarter of a game at home against the Houston Rockets on Jan. 21, a rare sight from the Warriors star who rarely loses his composure.

Later that game, he led the Warriors on a comeback, capitalized by a step back mid-range jumper with time expiring to give the team a 105-103 win. It was his first ever game-winning buzzer beater, and the team subsequently went on a nine game winning streak.

 

Breaking out of struggles

After Curry’s game winner against the Rockets, he had more off shooting nights in three of the next four games, but the team picked up wins anyway. 

Players like Poole, Kuminga, Wiggins and Looney stepped up to help win games even with Curry not shooting well and Thompson still on a minutes restriction.

Curry broke out of his slump with a 40 point game against the Rockets on Jan. 31, including 21 points in the 4th quarter to put the Rockets away. 

There were some very exciting games with clutch shots and highlight plays during the nine game winning streak.

On Jan. 27, the Splash Brothers combined for 54 points in a victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Two days later in the Warriors vs. Nets matchup on Jan. 29, Wiggins scored 24 points to keep the Warriors in the game and the Splash Brothers closed out the game after getting hot in the fourth quarter. Thompson sealed the game by making a three point shot to put the Warriors up by four with under 20 seconds remaining.

The Warriors’ win against the San Antonio Spurs was the most impressive game of the year, as the team came back from down 17 points with a 23-5 run in the fourth quarter without Curry, Thompson, Wiggins or Green. 

In fact, the Warriors only had 9 players available that game, and they got the win behind Poole’s 31 points, shooting guard Damion Lee’s 21 points, Moody’s 20 points, Kuminga’s 19 points and Looney’s 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Poole made a game winning three pointer from the corner with about 10 seconds remaining.

In the next game on Feb. 3 against the Sacramento Kings, Thompson caught fire in the first half, starting 7/7 from the field and 6/6 from three. He got 21 points in his first 10 minutes of play.

Another exciting part about the win streak was that Kuminga blossomed in a starting role on the team after Green got injured.

His defense, explosiveness and improvement is fun to watch. He has proved that he has potential to be a star and already has an impressive collection of high flying dunks.

He had a poster dunk on Jan. 25 against the Dallas Mavericks, a windmill dunk in the comeback win against the Spurs and a reverse windmill dunk against the Kings on Feb. 3.

During the win streak, he averaged 10.1 points on 52.9% shooting from the field.

 

Struggles before the all-star break

In the five games following the Warriors’ nine game win streak, the team went just 1-4, but this is not a reason to worry since Green has still been out with a lower back disc injury. These struggles are just another reminder of how crucial Green is to the success of the team. The Warriors are now 14-11 this season without Green, a stark contrast to their 28-6 record with him playing.

According to statmuse.com, the Warriors’ defensive rating is 101.9 with Green playing but 110.8 without him, meaning the team has the best defense in the NBA by far with him, but is only mediocre defensively without him.

This really showed in the Warriors’ losses before the all-star break, as the team was struggling defensively and getting outrebounded significantly. Opposing teams exposed the Warriors’ lack of an interior defensive presence without Green.

Another reason fans should not be worried about the losses is that some of the games were anomalies or close games which could have gone either way.

One example is the 116-114 loss against the New York Knicks on Feb. 10 after a close goaltending call against Kuminga and a missed midrange jumper by Thompson. The Warriors also lost 117-116 against the Denver Nuggets on Feb. 16 after shooting an uncharacteristically low 29.4% from three and losing at the buzzer to a three-pointer by Nuggets point guard Monte Morris.

Once Green returns from his injury, the Warriors should get back to winning games behind their lockdown defense. Wiseman’s anticipated return can also significantly help the team with interior defense and rebounding. 

Giving props to the front office

Warriors fans have a lot to be excited about, whether it’s the team’s current success, Thompson being back, Wiseman returning or even exciting young players who have shown flashes of potential future stardom.

The front office has built a team that contends for a championship but will also be very good for years to come. With a 22-year-old Poole already averaging 16.4 points per game, 19-year-olds shooting guard Moses Moody and forward Jonathan Kuminga and a 20-year-old Wiseman, the Warriors have set themselves up for success in the coming seasons.

In his third season, Poole is flourishing and playing a key role on the team after spending time in the G-league the past two seasons.

The Warriors seemed to be doing the same with Moody and Kuminga earlier in the season, but Kuminga is already starting to be part of the rotation regularly due to his quality defense and ability to finish at the rim. His potential is highlighted by his 26-point game on Dec. 18 against the Toronto Raptors, during which many of the Warriors’ best players were resting, and his 25-point game on Jan. 14 against the Chicago Bulls.

Though many Warriors fans were unhappy with the front office not trading young players or picks in the draft for another all-star player at first, those doubts have been put to rest after the team’s hot start to the season. 

On the court, the Warriors look like one cohesive unit, with all players understanding the system they are playing in. With the second-best record in the NBA and the anticipated return of star players, the Warriors’ championship hopes are very much alive and fans are ecstatic to see it.