Coming into the season, most people thought the Warriors had a legitimate shot at defending their title and potentially repeating as champions again.
It’s still early in the season right now but, uh, those chances aren’t looking so great.
The team is 6-9 so far this season but that doesn’t even begin to tell the story of just how bad they’ve been. They have a -1.4 net rating on the season and are the 27th-ranked defense in the league after being the 2nd best last year.
Things get even worse when you look at their performance on the road where they’re 0-8 so far. Only the Pistons and Lakers have a worse net rating than Golden State away from home.
They’ve been awful. Just awful. But here’s the catch: They’re falling flat on their faces while Steph Curry is absolutely torching the NBA.
He’s putting up some unbelievable numbers right now.
Curry had his best game against the Suns and it didn't even matter
What Curry did to the Suns can only be categorized as an offensive explosion.
He dropped 50 points on 28 shots, made 7 3-pointers and went to the free throw line 9 times.
Steph Curry tonight:
50 points
9 rebounds
6 assists
17/28 FG
7/11 3PT
9/9 FTGet this man some help pic.twitter.com/aGz93c0bcf
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) November 17, 2022
He quite literally looked like vintage Steph.
Stephen Curry put on a SCORING CLINIC, putting up a 50 BALL on 60.7% shooting and knocking down 7 triples!
💦 @StephenCurry30: 50 PTS, 9 REB, 6 AST, 7 3PM pic.twitter.com/DsB1S5oXTY
— NBA (@NBA) November 17, 2022
But the Warriors still somehow trailed through the entire game. This is essentially what their season has been all year long.
He's having an MVP caliber season
Curry is currently scoring a career-high 32.8 points per game on essentially the same efficiency he did in his unanimous MVP season.
The only player to average 30+ points on 50/40/90 shooting was Steph Curry in 2015-16.
He's currently on pace to do it again.
GSW/PHX, 10pm/et, ESPN pic.twitter.com/fMpPJjZrlY
— NBA (@NBA) November 16, 2022
To put this in perspective, Steph Curry is scoring more efficiently this year than Rudy Gobert has in all but one season of his career.
And Gobert is an athletic and long 7-footer whose job is to stand near the rim and make point blake shots over shorter people https://t.co/rNKKUxf06k
— Brady Klopfer (@BradyKlopferNBA) November 17, 2022
But it’s not leading to Warriors wins.
So what's the problem?
Steve Kerr outlined it here. He was brutally honest about his team and said they’re playing a “Drew League” game.
Steve Kerr on his Warriors: "We're playing a Drew League game right now."
Damn, Steve. pic.twitter.com/vQ5JIjVPCv
— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) November 17, 2022
“There’s no collective grit. We lack grit right now. And when you don’t have grit the game is really easy for the other team…It’s a Drew League game. We’re playing a Drew League game right now.”
Klay Thompson also looks pretty bad
Thompson hasn’t shot the ball well all season long, but he’s also taken a lot of shots. He’s scored 174 points on 183 shots so far this season and just hasn’t been the efficient player everyone is used to him being.
Klay Thompson sits late third quarter with 12 points on 5/15 shooting. On the season: 174 points on 183 shots. He's shooting a tick below 35 percent and has only attempted 12 free throws in 12 games.
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) November 17, 2022
He’s forcing shots which is leading to mismatches and easy offense for Warriors’ opponents on the other end. Here’s a quick example.
Warriors' biggest problem isn't Klay Thompson. Tough not to think of this awful 3Q sequence when Kerr spoke postgame about team's "lack of commitment to the group," tho.
Indefensible shots at this point in the game. Time to rein in his shot selection, re-acclimation be damned. pic.twitter.com/ibmIWDzG9r
— Jack Winter (@ArmstrongWinter) November 17, 2022
Deandre Ayton didn’t make that jump hook there, but he had Curry guarding him in the paint as the Warriors scrambled out of transition. That’s a matchup the Suns want every single time down.
And on the other end, Thompson’s defense has suffered, too. He’s been a step slow
The bench is also still awful
The Warriors’ depth is just not what it used to be. Over the years, the team has always had cohesive bench units that have been able to play together. That’s just not there this year.
Part of the reason is that they entrusted their bench to their up-and-coming players, with many of them still getting acclimated to their system. Names like James Wiseman — who was shifted to the G League recently — and Jonathan Kuminga come to mind.
But the Warriors’ “two timeline” strategy hasn’t gone well at all so far this year. That’s showing itself in the numbers. Their bench unit has a collective –10.6 net rating this year. That’s awful and it needs to be better. If it can’t, the Warriors are cooked.
This team is failing Steph Curry
Basketball is a team sport. There is no single player who is to blame for their shortcomings so far this season. The Warriors win as a team and they lose as a team.
With that said, it’s hard to put any of this on Steph Curry. His numbers are ridiculous. He’d be the early front-runner for MVP if this team was any good at this point.
But it’s not. And, because of that, this incredible season of Curry’s might fall by the wayside.
