Generally speaking, by the midpoint of a semester, you can have a pretty solid idea of the grade you are going to get for a class. You might be able to hit the books, maybe even hire a tutor to add to your arsenal aimed at earning the best possible grade you can get for the semester.
And that is where the Golden State Warriors find themselves in a recent midseason assessment by Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey. At more or less the midpoint of the NBA’s 2023-24 season, the Dubs have not been finding the sort of success they have grown accustomed to over the years on either end of the court.
There’s still time to right the ship with Draymond Green returning to the fold and the possibility of trades to shake up a moribund roster construction to get a better grade. But as things stand now, Golden State is in real danger of a failing grade.
Should Golden State trade for Pascal Siakam? https://t.co/L1mg59u1oF pic.twitter.com/O698G0nacH
— Warriors Wire (@TheWarriorsWire) January 15, 2024
“Let’s recap what’s happened with the Golden State Warriors since the last round of grades,” writes Bailey.
- Draymond Green smacked Jusuf Nurkic in the head and drew an indefinite suspension.
- The Warriors went 8-8.
- Reports surfaced that Jonathan Kuminga had “lost faith” in coach Steve Kerr.
- Chris Paul went down with a hand injury.
- Stephen Curry shot 40.2% from the field and 35.2% from 3.
- The team fell outside the Western Conference top 10, which is where the play-in range ends.
“If this campaign didn’t already feel like a “Last Dance” season, it sure does now,” he adds.
3 free agent centers that make sense for Warriors final roster spot https://t.co/ENZOV0mO6t pic.twitter.com/C71OGor2NL
— Warriors Wire (@TheWarriorsWire) January 15, 2024
“Beyond all of the above, Andrew Wiggins is still struggling to find the form he had in the 2022 postseason,” notes Bailey.
“The Warriors still can’t slow anyone down on defense. And contending feels like a pipe dream (assuming the team can’t pull a trade rabbit out of its hat). It’s still hard to say they’re “failing.” A decade of excellence inspires some confidence in the team figuring things out at some point.”
“But on balance, the first half of the season was just plain bad,” closes the B/R analyst.
FINAL GRADE: D+
Anonymous GM: 'Not a lot of value for (Andrew) Wiggins right now' https://t.co/5E7t2snSbD pic.twitter.com/dj8nDqkKRw
— Warriors Wire (@TheWarriorsWire) January 16, 2024
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