The Warriors’ 2021-22 season has been a rollercoaster ride thus far, featuring surprising amounts of success, impressive winning streaks and record-breaking performances. Golden State has also experienced prolonged injuries and numerous shooting slumps.
They began the new year as the best team in the NBA before losing six of nine in early January, suffering a five-game losing streak towards the end of February into early March.
Still, there are 13 regular-season games left and Golden State is neck-to-neck for the second seed in the West and is tied (with the Memphis Grizzlies) for the second-best record in the league, only behind the Phoenix Suns.
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While the chatter about this year’s Warriors squad and their chances of making it to their sixth NBA Finals in the last 10 years keeps changing, and rightfully so, one person has been confident in Golden State since the beginning of the season.
“When I look at the Phoenix Suns, and I look at the Golden State Warriors, fully loaded and healthy, with Klay [Thompson], Steph [Curry] on the court, with Draymond [Green], with [Jordan] Poole and [Jonathan] Kuminga and all those brothers that Draymond is going to be there to held accountable, I’m rolling with the Warriors,” ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith said on First Take on Tuesday.
“The only team that makes me nervous, ok Phoenix makes me a little I gotta confess that, but Brooklyn healthy and on the court together, makes me considerably nervous because Kyrie [Irving] with [Kevin Durant] on the court against those brothers, with Ben Simmons and the crew, I would be nervous but I’m still rolling with the Warriors until further notice. I’m sorry I’m not going against them with a healthy Draymond Green, I’m not doing it.”
Across the coast, the Nets appear locked in and focused after starting the season with the controversy that was Kyrie Irving’s vaccination status, James Harden going to Philadelphia and now Ben Simmons finding his way in Brooklyn.
After losing 17-of-20, including an ugly 11-game losing streak, the Nets are looking to extend their much-needed three-game win streak.
Golden State Warriors
Meanwhile, the Suns have already earned their spot in the playoffs, the first team to do so in the postseason, even after playing a few games without leaders Chris Paul and Devin Booker.
CP3 has been out since Feb. 24 with a thumb injury, but the Suns are hoping their veteran point guard will be back in time for playoffs. But securing their spot in the postseason gave the Suns some leeway to allow Paul to focus on fully recovering from his injury.
But even when the 12-time NBA All-Star does return to the court, Stephen A. is confident in Curry and this Dubs squad.
“CP3 is phenomenal in his own right, ok,” Stephen A. said. “At the age of 36, he’s arguably the best point guard in basketball… But if there’s one that can arguably be his kryptonite, it is Steph Curry. You know why? Because Steph Curry ain’t trying to run the team. Steph Curry is pulling up from 40. That’s a problem for CP3. That’s a problem for anybody, but especially CP3, who’s relatively undersized. He’s a pit bull, he’s an ultra-competitor, he’s incredibly elite at what he does, he’s a winner, we get all of that. But when going up against Steph Curry, who can pull up from the parking lot, it’s a bit problematic for him.
“You look at Klay coming on, that’s a bit problematic. We see the Jordan Pooles of the world and others that they have, we can’t ignore the fact that Golden State is still a top-five defensive team in the NBA, even playing two and a half months without Draymond. So Draymond doesn’t just elevate them offensively because he doesn’t just position guys to get better shots, which definitely helps, but he’s also a guy that elevates your defense.”
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Monday was the first time in 1,005 days that Steph, Klay and Draymond played together, and the Warriors looked complete again.
Add Andre Iguodala (back), Gary Payton II (knee) and 7-foot center James Wiseman (knee) back into the mix, and Stephen A.’s confident prediction could become a reality.