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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….
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/sneakily-dangerous-warriors-prowling-bite-171911634.html
Author : NBC Sports BayArea
Publish date : 2024-10-23 17:19:00
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