After one of the more forgetful seasons in their recent history, things are looking up for Stephen Curry and the rest of the Golden State Warriors. Clearly, this past season wasn't an ideal one for the Bay Area squad as they tallied the worst record in the league (15-50) and were miles away from being in playoff contention almost all-season long.

But now that the title is back has fallen into the hands of a another Cali squad after the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA Finals over the Miami Heat, the Warriors are looking to reclaim their spot as the league's top team. ESPN released a ‘way-too-early' version of their 2021 power rankings with the Warriors surprisingly showing up all the way up in no. 6.

The defending champion Lakers were at the top of the list with the Los Angeles Clippers coming at second and reigning back-to-back MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo's Milwaukee Bucks rounded out the top three.

Even if they put up a rather embarrassing 2019-2020 outing, Golden State found themselves outranking the Houston Rockets (#12), Utah Jazz (#13), Portland Trail Blazers (#14) and the Oklahoma City Thunder (#15) who all made it to the NBA Bubble and competed in this year's playoffs. Only the Denver Nuggets (#4) and the Dallas Mavericks (#5) came in front of the 2018 NBA champions.

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With their championship core still intact, it's hard to argue against ESPN's premature 2021 rankings. If anything, it might be selling the former champs short.

Curry has fully rehabilitated his left hand while a healthy Klay Thompson and a hungry Draymond Green are also patiently waiting to return to the floor. The Warriors also have some interesting new talent coming back with Eric Paschal and Andrew Wiggins balling out in their debut season with the Dubs. With a second overall pick in the upcoming 2020 NBA draft tucked safely in their back pockets, it's not surprising that experts are high on the Warriors' chance to at least compete for a spot back to the NBA Finals.