This was to be the road trip that would provide a means by which to measure the Warriors. It would expose the best and worst of themselves and, in the process, offer considerable insight into their potential.
And it is providing nothing of the sort. It has been a nightmare, from the blowout in Milwaukee, to Stephen Curry being struck down in Indiana to the ongoing absence of Andrew Wiggins and the sight of a perplexed Klay Thompson trapped in a web of despair.
After being demolished, 132-94, by the New York Knicks – the hottest team in the NBA – on Tuesday, the Warriors are 1-4 on the six-game roadie that ends Wednesday night against another of the league’s second-hottest team: Brooklyn, winners of seven straight, led by superstar and former Warrior Kevin Durant.
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As it stands, the Warriors (15-17) are 11th in the Western Conference – and no more than three weeks away from diving deeply into significant decisions about their roster.
By the evening of Jan. 10, Golden State will have played 41 games, precisely half a season. At least a third of those games will have been without Curry. Mid- to late January is a good guess about his return, but until there is more clarity it would be imprudent to make dramatic changes. General manager Bob Myers is fond is saying he’d “like to see what our team looks like” before planting both feet in the trade bazaar.
That gives CEO Joe Lacob, Myers and their lieutenants nine more games to know what the Warriors look like without Curry. Eight of those games will be at home.
“We know what it takes for us to win without Steph,” Kevon Looney told reporters Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. “We know what the formula is going to have to be. We just got to go out there and execute. We’ve got to start with defense and rebounding and limiting the turnovers.”
Golden State Warriors
That has been the Warriors’ problem. Mr. Knowing and Miss Doing can’t seem to connect, much less forge a lasting relationship.
While it’s too early to spread anxiety, 32 games are plenty enough to realize that aside from a stirring home win over the Celtics 11 days ago the Warriors have not found anything remotely resembling magic.
Their longest win streak is three games, and their longest losing streak is five games. Their 3-15 road record is the worst in the league – and the worst ever through 18 games for any defending NBA champion. As their defense has improved – they’re ninth in defensive rating over the past three weeks – their sloppiness on offense has remained steady; only the young and erratic Rockets commit more turnovers and allow more points off the empty possessions.
The Knicks, for example, piled up 36 points – nearly 30 percent of their total – off 20 Golden State turnovers.
The Warriors will face Kyrie Irving and KD without Curry, without Wiggins and without Thompson. Donte DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green weren’t available against the Knicks and might not be available against the Nets. Draymond Green played 26 minutes against the Knicks but might sit this one out.
There are scheduled losses, and this one, sending a skeleton crew to face a team finally finding its contender’s wheels, has all the elements. The best reasonable hope is that there will be a great many teachable moments for the youngsters who don’t get much run.
This much we know: Chase Center never looked so good to the Warriors.
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Once they return to the Bay Area on Thursday, they will be home for three full weeks, taking them through Jan. 10, with the first game coming on Christmas Day against the upstart rivals from Memphis.
The highest of hopes remain alive, but this trip through the best of the Eastern Conference has had the charm of a 6 a.m. jackhammer. It’s not a wake-up call but a wicked paddle to the rump.
And Curry’s return, whenever that is, should not be viewed as a panacea.
“We were trying to figure stuff out with him,” coach Steve Kerr conceded on Sunday in Toronto. “We haven’t really gained any traction this year, especially on the road. We have a lot of balls in the air with this team.”
Indeed, they do. Sore backside and all, it won’t be long before the Warriors will be forced to decide how they will approach the second half of the season.