They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.
Don’t tell Steve Kerr and the Warriors.
The last time we saw these guys, it felt like it could be the last time. The future was still very much up in the air heading into the summer. Kerr was contemplating retirement. The center of their galaxy, Steph Curry, was 38 and dealing with a new and potentially chronic knee issue.
Inside a room about the size of a broom closet after their play-in elimination to the Suns, Kerr said he was no longer sure he was the right man for the job. Curry acknowledged there would need to be a “new normal” for himself and different expectations for the Warriors. Draymond Green couldn’t say for sure if he’d be back, or if Golden State would want him back.
The last remaining vestiges of their dynasty were cracking. An era was coming to an end.
A few months later, they’re running it back again.
For all of the unknowns when they parted ways in April, it was a relatively quiet summer at One Warriors Way. Kerr signed up for two more years. Curry signed an extension almost as soon as he was eligible. And, after declining his player option so that the Warriors could explore other avenues, Green re-upped at the same rate ($27.7 million) when none of those options panned out.
LeBron James turned down the alluring idea of teaming up with Curry for a better chance at a championship in Philadelphia. Their top target this past trade deadline (Kawhi Leonard) and the white whale they’ve been after for years (Giannis Antetokounmpo) found other destinations.
For much of the offseason, Mike Dunleavy Jr. was the only general manager who had yet to make one modification to his roster. And still, when you look on the visitors’ bench Wednesday night inside Crypto.com Arena, the most notable new faces will belong to a draft pick (Yaxel Lendeborg, taken 11th overall) and an assistant coach (Frank Vogel, hired to lead the defense).
The changes that the Warriors believe — well, at least, hope — can squeeze the last bit of juice out of the Curry era will be more noticeable on the court, between the lines. When Kerr decided to return, he was clear: The Warriors, and himself at age 61, were going to have to evolve.
Chaos no longer works in their favor. The offense will feature more set plays and patterns. Sheet music instead of freeform jazz. They turned the ball over more than all but three other teams last season and ranked in the bottom half of the league in offensive efficiency.
“It used to be more acceptable because we had more talent than everybody,” Kerr said. “But that hasn’t been the case now for a while. The league has changed. … We are no longer in that position. That’s been really exposed the last couple of years.”
Last season ended with 37 regular-season wins, the No. 10 seed and an elimination in the second play-in game. Kerr has described it on multiple occasions as a “transition” year.
This year, “I feel like we’re leaning all the way into the things that we’re trying to do,” he said.
Knowing they have to survive without Jimmy Butler or Moses Moody until at least the new year, “We were presented an opportunity to reimagine things, revamp things,” Kerr said. “I think we have a cleaner, clearer picture of what our identity is gonna become.”
STARTING 5
Can the Warriors stay afloat until February?
That’s about when the Warriors can expect Butler and Moody to return from their respective knee injuries. And the best chance to upgrade their roster at the Feb. 11 trade deadline. The outcomes of those three variables will ultimately decide where the Warriors are left standing when things are said and done. But they have to play well enough without them to put themselves in position for it to matter when their top two wings return — and, for that matter, for it to be worth Dunleavy’s while to swing a trade at the deadline. “Our job,” Kerr said, “is to get this team clicking, building momentum.”
Is Yaxel Lendeborg ready to contribute right away?
Lendeborg isn’t like any other recent Warriors rookie — they drafted him 11th overall knowing full well that they were going to count on him to get to where they want to go. He won’t need to twist Kerr’s arm for playing time — expect to see the 6-foot-9, 241-pounder in the starting lineup on opening night. Kerr has gone as far as to say the 24-year-old could be the Warriors’ best basket-getter in the minutes Curry isn’t on the floor. They’ve told him they need him to be aggressive on the offensive end of the floor, and it would seem that he’s been receptive to the message. After being held to six points on 1-of-6 shooting in his preseason debut, Lendeborg averaged 19 points while going 22 of 36 from the floor over his final three exhibitions. Now, the Warriors need him to do it when the games count.
Will Brandin Podziemski live up to his $110M extension?
Besides Lendeborg, Podziemski might be the Warriors’ most important player. The parties agreed to a five-year, $110 million extension shortly before the season began, a reward for Podziemski overperforming expectations as the 19th overall pick in 2023 but also a sign of the Warriors’ belief that there’s another level his game can reach — possibly the bridge to a post-Curry world. While Curry’s still around for now, absent any major offseason acquisitions, without Butler or Moody and with an otherwise elderly roster, Golden State will need Podziemski to take that next step starting on opening night.
Can Steve Kerr get his stars to take care of the basketball?
It would get a little awkward sometimes, according to Curry. He and Green would be at the front of the room during a film session when an especially egregious turnover they were responsible for would come on screen without a peep from Kerr. Those days are over. The benefits of the controlled chaos that created the Warriors’ beautiful brand of basketball no longer outweigh the costs, which means Curry and Green will be held to the same standard as everybody else in the locker room. It’s taken some time to take effect: On average over five preseason contests, Golden State turned the ball over more than 20 times per game.
What will the Warriors do with their ‘flexibility’?
There’s at least one upside to the Warriors’ quiet offseason, according to Dunleavy. “We’ve maintained some flexibility,” he said. “We have a whole bunch of assets.” Eventually, the Warriors will have to cash those in. They have an extra $10 million to play with, thanks to the generosity of Curry, plus more than $100 million in expiring contracts, including $20 million owed to Kristaps Porzingis that seems to practically be earmarked to match salaries in a midseason blockbuster. They should get Butler and Moody back around midseason, but they shouldn’t be the Warriors’ only additions.
BUZZER BEATERS
Newcomer to Watch
Brandon Williams brings an entirely novel element to the Warriors: speed. Kerr said the diminutive point guard is probably the “most explosive” player he’s had at his disposal since Leandro Barbosa. He’s also going to be asked to play an outsized role in relation to the nonguaranteed $2.6 million deal he signed over the summer — backup point guard and the primary ball handler when Curry is off the court, which will be more often than in the past as he manages his knee condition. Williams, 26, is coming off his best season as a pro, averaging 13 points and 3.9 assists in a career-high 66 games (15 starts), and Kerr said he believes he “has the talent to solidify himself and be a 10-year, 12-year NBA player.” But that may hinge on his ability to take better care of the basketball: In five preseason games, Williams had more turnovers (15) than assists (11).
Most Important Decision
How the Warriors keep Steph Curry healthy. It started over the summer, the process of overhauling Curry’s legendary training regimen to remove any unnecessary stress on the knees that forced him to miss almost half of last season. “A new normal,” Curry termed it, heading into his age-38 season, his 18th in the NBA on the legs that, year after year, log more mileage than anybody else in the league. The seemingly ageless, invincible Curry stared mortality in the eye last season. An overuse injury to the body part that gets used more than any other in the NBA — runner’s knee, a condition typically reserved for long-distance runners that can become chronic if not allowed to heal properly. Curry introduced an underwater treadmill to his cardio over the summer to limit the pounding on his joints. He’ll work with Dr. Rick Celebrini on an in-season recovery program. Curry recently said his knees were feeling “great.” But it’s October. Get back to us in April.
Good Days to Come
It’s not 2022 again, but the circumstances aren’t all that different. The Warriors’ window was considered closed, Curry and Green past their prime, and look where they ended up. The parallels even go as far as the supporting piece acquired the previous season whose availability is suddenly called into question heading into opening night. Andrew Wiggins eventually overcame his concerns over the COVID-19 vaccine and went on to become an All-Star and an NBA champion. Maybe Porzingis finds a cure for his mysterious illness and can do the same.
Bad Days Ahead
Unfortunately, it’s not exactly hard to make the case. The Warriors barely snuck into the play-in last season. They’re missing their top two wings, one of whom is also their second-best player, until probably February. Their best player is 38 with a bum knee, his sidekick is nowhere near as effective as he once was and their supporting cast includes a 40-year-old who doesn’t play back-to-backs and an infirmary case masquerading as a big man. The house of cards wasn’t that tall to begin with, and it’s already beginning to wobble.
Don’t Be Surprised If
Draymond Green falls out of the starting lineup. The 36-year-old began to show his age last season, a step slower on defense and more passive than ever before on the other end of the floor. Now, the Warriors are asking him to make arguably the biggest adjustment of anyone in their move to a five-out offensive system. If Al Horford stays healthy and Lendeborg is ready for primetime, Green could be on the outside looking in.
Story That Won’t Go Away
Where in the world is Kristaps Porzingis? Even Warriors brass weren’t aware of the Latvian’s whereabouts weeks after the rest of the team had reported for training camp. Dunleavy was surprised as anybody when the 7-footer called to tell him less than 24 hours before the start of camp that an “illness” would prevent him from attending. He finally stepped foot in the Warriors’ building eight days before their season opener, but the episode should serve as a wakeup call that the health issues that have plagued Porzingis for much of his career are far from behind him, despite Dunleavy expressing optimism about his availability when he re-signed him to a $20 million extension for this season. Porzingis could play a big part in determining how far the Warriors can go. Or, that role could be played by the chip they’re able to acquire using his contract to match salaries in a midseason trade.