Should you care: ESPN's Stephen A. Smith has made his pick for the 2021-22 NBA championship, and it's not the Los Angeles Lakers nor the Brooklyn Nets. Instead, Stephen A. is riding with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and the Golden State Warriors.

Stephen A. tweeted out his new prediction, as long as Klay and James Wiseman prove to be healthy upon returning to the Warriors' lineup.

Entering Thursday, Golden State is tied for the best record in basketball, at 6-1.

Curry, of course, leads the team in scoring at 26.7 points per game, though, like the rest of the league, hasn't quite gotten going from the perimeter. The most prolific sniper in NBA history is shooting just 42.0 percent from the field and 37.4 percent from beyond the arc (low for him), on 13 three-point attempts per game.

Curry is also producing 7.6 rebounds (!), 6.9 assists, and 1.4 steals per game.

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Jordan Poole — a popular preseason pick for both Sixth Man of the Year and Most Improved Player — is second on the team, averaging 16.4 PPG on 43.0 percent shooting.

Draymond Green has been arguably the best defensive player in basketball through the first few weeks of the 2021-22 NBA season. On the other side of the ball, he's putting up 8.7 points, 8.9 rebounds, 7.1 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.0 block(s) per game. Damion Lee has excelled, too.

Most impressively, the Warriors have the best defensive rating in basketball thus far (97.1).

Earlier this week, The Athletic's Anthony Slater provided an updated timetable for Thompson's long-awaited return — mid-December. James Wiseman is slowly recovering from a meniscus tear he suffered late in his rookie season, though Warriors head coach Steve Kerr recently said he's close to ramping up his activity.

Lottery pick Jonathan Kuminga (knee strain) is expected back soon, too.

All things considered, Stephen A.'s take is not particularly hot: The Warriors are currently listed at +850 to win their fourth NBA championship in eight seasons, per BetOnline.ag.