The Warriors are rolling.
That’s hardly surprising this season, though. They’ve won nine of their last ten games, hold a 7.5 game lead ahead of the next best team in the Western Conference and are contenders for every award the NBA has to offer. It’s quite the far cry from last season, when one year ago today this happened and the team – despite its success and eventual playoff berth – was in the midst of enormous internal dysfunction.
With 12 games left on the regular season schedule, the team faces a difficult four-game road trip that sees them visiting Portland, Memphis, Milwaukee and Los Angeles. The #1 seed is all but locked up, and with Klay Thompson returning to the lineup Monday in a 107-76 victory over the Washington Wizards, the playoffs couldn’t come any sooner.
Most recently, the 57-13 Warriors – despite running the table with the #1 seed in the Western Conference – were in store for a similar type of trouble. No, not the internal mess that left them this past offseason, but another series of unfortunate events that would lead them to the most difficult #8 seed since, ironically, the Golden State Warriors in 2007.
The return of Kevin Durant to the Oklahoma City Thunder in addition to the acquisitions of Enes Kanter, Kyle Singler and D.J. Augustin would make for an extremely challenging opening round. If the Thunder were somehow to miss the playoffs, Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans await. In the unlikely event that both of the aforementioned teams come short, Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Knight and the high-octane Phoenix Suns were the challenger.
That was last week, and in this hectic Western Conference all it takes is one injury or one bad stretch to completely alter the playoff outlook. The once daunting first round matchup between the Thunder now eases with Serge Ibaka undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery and Durant suffering a season-ending setback. The streaky Suns are now 2.5 games back of the last playoff spot with the oft-injured Pelicans right behind them.
What are the Warriors playing for now? The daunting 72-10 record of the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls isn’t happening, the 67-15 record of the 2006-07 Dallas Mavericks is still in reach, but other than a bullet point in the game notes that doesn’t mean much. As was the case in the previous regime and variations of this team, health remains the biggest concern as the season comes to a close.
Andrew Bogut has been the subject of most of the criticism when it comes to injuries during his tenure, but with good merit. He’s the anchor of the best defense in the league (99.7), and in his absence the Warriors are sieves inside. The bench is better but it’s breakable, and if Bogut goes down (again) the team’s playoff hopes lie in the defensive efforts of Marreese Speights, Festus Ezeli and David Lee.
Even following Kerr’s internal moves – swapping Lee for Draymond Green and starting Harrison Barnes – and the improved second-unit, the Warriors still can’t win a championship with the Aussie sidelined. This has been the case and will continue to be until he’s no longer the center.
It’s not easy, as Bogut is playing the best basketball of the season – 6 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks (+32) in just 23 minutes on Monday night — but it’s what’s needed by whatever means necessary. Thompson’s ankle scare should see him sitting some games as well down the stretch in what has become a growing trend in today’s endless journey known as an NBA regular season.
“I think it’s going to be a brawl in every series,” said Bogut after the game. “Whoever gets out of that West the East might even steal one because the West is going to get so banged up. Every team you play in the West is going to be tough. We’re ready for the playoffs but it’s a whole different level you have to prepare for.”
The Warriors quest to an NBA title isn’t so much a dream as it is a reality anymore, and with the playoffs looming this team is playing some of the best basketball it has all season. Monday’s dominant performance – and the 6-0 homestand – was another example of such basketball brilliance. The season has gone too well for it to be spoiled by such monetary hindrances.
The regular season record is a feat to be proud of, but it isn’t a lasting impression on anyone if the postseason is a failure. Health is the most important goal with just a handful of games remaining. The system is in place, the style is a successful one and the games that lead to an NBA championship couldn’t come soon enough.
“It’s important to peak at the right time, you don’t want to peak too early,” Green said following the game. “At the same time, you want to reach that point where you want reach your peak.”
The Warriors haven’t reached their peak yet, and that’s scary for the rest of the league.