Subscribe
Follow Us
The Golden State Warriors have been treated to two straight mollywopping results in their first two games of the 2019-20 campaign, first by the Los Angeles Clippers and recently against the Oklahoma City Thunder. But is this poor start to the first week on NBA action a sign of things to come?
A quick look at the numbers will indicate it is, as the Warriors lead the league in points allowed (130.5 per game), field goal percentage allowed (59.1%), and even rank as the second-worst team for 3-pointers allowed at 16.5 per game.
Simply put, Golden State has a ghastly defense and a suspect offense at best — two things that combine for a losing recipe that seems to steer the team more toward a lottery pick than a chance to make the postseason.
It's only two games, sure — but the supporting pieces are simply not doing enough to warrant any signs of faith early on — and a poor start to the season is near-fatal in a ruthless Western Conference, especially when many teams vow to take a crack at the crown.
Stephen Curry has been tasked with a large offensive load, but one that has proven tough to handle, considering the amount of pressure he's faced in his first two games. He's shooting a phantasmagoric 20% from three — making only four of his 20 3-point attempts thus far. Two of his four makes were open looks.
The two-time MVP shot 40% from the field or below in both games and turned the ball over 10 times in only 60 minutes of play.
If those numbers seem contrary to what we're used to seeing from him in recent years, it's because his supporting cast is simply nowhere near as good as it once was, and he's paying the ultimate price for it.
It's hard to fathom Curry being anywhere close to the 50-40-90 scorer he was during his hailed unanimous MVP season three years ago unless his teammates improve — and it's not only a couple of them, but nearly an entire roster that needs some catching up.
That task is by no means simple, and by the time players have started to show some noticeable progress, we can be looking at the Christmas Day games and far too behind to make a realistic playoff push.
Article Continues Below
The Warriors have started with issues at both ends, and that isn't easy to correct. The defense has given up seven straight 30-point quarters and it would have been eight, had Billy Donovan not sat out his starting core in the fourth quarter, where they dealt only half the damage.
Golden State has led for zero seconds this season, and if that seems unfathomable, let's take a look at the recent games for further evidence. The Warriors fell to 14-0 during their season debut at the Chase Center against the Clippers, then again 8-0 against the Thunder on Sunday. A quick glance at the preseason games shows they trailed the Los Angeles Lakers 11-0 in their first game of training camp, only to fall to 5-0 deficits the next two games against the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Lakers again in their third game, and then trail 11-2 the game after that.
This is no longer a short sample size, but signs that a slow start is the type of start this team is able to muster. Teams are zoning-in on Curry from the start and needless to say, it's been working. Whether it is Marquese Chriss hesitant to pull the trigger on pick-and-pops or Draymond Green finding himself as the pivot man on top of the key — only to realize he's open and let a brick fly from his hands.
Perhaps even worse, D'Angelo Russell getting himself tossed from Sunday's game after arguing a call with the officials — a sign that tempers are already running hot with the ineptitude of this team and its inability to score.
Sure Curry and Russell are bound to go off at some game or another, but none of those types of performances can crystalize as wins, considering this defense can't stop NBA teams from scoring and will struggle to produce once Curry or Russell hit the bench.
Head coach Steve Kerr has his toughest coaching job yet, but not even a master of the bench can make role players into stars, and the Warriors are feeling the heat of having their skies wiped out of those luminous talents that once kept Oracle Arena roaring all night long.
