Sneakily dangerous Warriors prowling for a bite of the NBA

Sneakily dangerous Warriors prowling for a bite of the NBA originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

PORTLAND – When the Warriors step onto the floor Wednesday night at Moda Center, they’re expected to crush the rebuilding and wounded Portland Trail Blazers. They’re expected to beat the rebuilding Jazz Friday night in Utah and then come home Sunday and put away a Los Angeles Clippers team without their best player.

To hear the Global Association of Basketball Specialists (GABS) tell it, the Warriors should treasure those three wins because it won’t be easy for them to find another three-game win streak this season.

It’s a fair conclusion to reach. After mocking the rest of the NBA for a few years, the Warriors have missed the playoffs in three of the past five seasons. They have spent the past three seasons tumbling down the Western Conference standings, from third to sixth to 10th. Which is why every preseason 2024 Power Rankings has them in the middle of the league; 14th is a popular spot. Even with Stephen Curry still on the roster and spectacular, at least 10 teams have better championship odds.

Yet the Warriors feel strangely OK with who they are. They don’t seem to mind the “underdog” designation. What really feels like is being sneakily dangerous.

“How far can we go? Pretty far,” Draymond Green told NBC Sports Bay Area. “I don’t know if we can go all the way, but I didn’t know that in (2022) either. We see how that turned out. I think we all knew we didn’t have a real chance in ’20 and ’21, but this is not like that. At all.”

One constant storyline coming out of training camp and apparent in Golden State’s 6-0 preseason record is the overall depth. Curry is the only perennial All-Star and Green remains a remarkable player/coach, but the cast around them is superior to that of last season.

Andrew Wiggins, after his worst season, says he’s primed for redemption. Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, both only 22, are older and wiser as they enter their fourth season. Brandin Podziemski and Trayce Jackson-Davis are firmly in the rotation, with TJD probably starting at center. Gary Payton II looks healthy and is entering a contract year. Kevon Looney, also in a contract year, is lean and taking occasional sips on offense.

The most visible season-to-season difference, however, is with the three veterans acquired in the offseason. Kyle Anderson, Buddy Hield and De’Anthony Melton have impressed teammates and coaches with their skills and demeanor. Their presence is one reason why the chemistry is drawing raves across the board.

“I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people,” Wiggins told NBC Sports Bay Area. “We have a very, very deep team. We have a lot of defenders and a lot of shooters. A lot of guys you can put out there and know good things are going to happen.”

Long gone are the days when the Warriors were NBA royalty, but they are justified in their belief that they not just another NBA team destined to spend six months fighting to finish above .500 in the standings.

The formula, as defined by coach Steve Kerr, is in understanding the blueprint and following it as a matter of routine.

“It’s depth, it’s strength in numbers, it’s being feisty,” Kerr said. “Defensively, a multiple-effort team. And we’ve got to push the ball.”

If these Warriors allow themselves to get stuck in a lot of halfcourt offense, they’ll struggle and Kerr will be forced to start juggling lineups and rotation, as was the case last season. If they bring the energy and maintain it, they can be greater than the sum of their parts.

The players are being pushed. Kerr’s new assistants, Terry Stotts for the offense and Jerry Stackhouse for the defense, already have made an impact. Stotts is giving Kerr’s motion offense a greater sense of structure – especially in the halfcourt – and Stackhouse is barking in a language the players seem to like.

And everybody from general manager Mike Dunleavy to Kerr to Curry and Green agree that improving defensive efficiency is crucial for the team to climb out of the bottom half of the conference standings.

“With our group, if we defend, great things will happen,” Wiggins said. “You want someone that’s going to hold you accountable. That’s something (former assistant coach) Mike Brown did. He held people accountable. He’s a hard presence to replace. But I feel Stack has done a hell of a job so far, making his presence known and showing how much he cares about defense.”

Though stripped of their aura, the Warriors look like a team on the quiet prowl. There is urgency because Curry is 36 and Green is 34. There is energy because the roster has been refreshed. There is faith because, well, they have some very decorated leaders.

So, they can sleep well knowing they are being dismissed outside their circle. Not one of the eight reporters at CBS Sports picked them to finish in the top six, and five have them outside the top eight. No one at ESPN or Yahoo Sports has them within sniffing distance of the Conference Finals. The Athletic has Golden State one-and-done in the playoffs.

Fine by the Warriors. They don’t know how good they can be, but they like what they have on the court and the bench. If they can follow the blueprint on a semi-regular basis, they should find themselves back inside the velvet rope of the NBA’s 50-win club.

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