So are these dubs real?
We may know the reply to that before we all know who the subsequent President of the United States will probably be.
The Warriors are playing excellent basketball and are 6-1 this season. That's no coincidence – the Dubs are the second-best defensive team within the NBA, forcing 17 turnovers per game. These stops have helped create transition opportunities for the offense, allowing the team to play faster and take greater than 90 shots per game.
But before all of us start getting a handle on our calendars so we will watch Warriors basketball in May and June, it must be noted that the Dubs have undoubtedly played the best schedule within the league to date.
All credit on the earth for making the most of the chance – it was anything but easy considering Steph Curry just missed three games with an ankle injury. But who did the Warriors beat? Are there good teams?
I haven't seen one yet. Sorry, Houston.
That changes starting Wednesday, when a three-game road game begins against the three best teams within the NBA this season: the Celtics, the undefeated Cavs and the team to beat within the West, the Thunder.
I'm not going to say an NBA game in November is significant. It is way too early for such conversations.
So how about this: This troika, starting with a nationally televised showdown between the Warriors and the defending champions, will probably be… illuminating.
Let's deal with the primary of the three games: The Celtics have carried the momentum of their title into the 2024-25 season, entering with a record of 7-1, albeit against a listing of opponents that’s arguably as unimpressive as that the Warriors.
But the Celtics don’t have anything to prove. On the opposite hand, the Warriors have the whole lot to prove after a season during which they were the last team to succeed in the postseason within the Western Conference and were eliminated within the play-in tournament. And that was before an impromptu offseason remodel following Klay Thompson's departure to Dallas.
We don't know what the Dubs are yet.
A win on Wednesday at the location where the Warriors won the 2022 NBA title would tell us quite a bit.
Even a detailed game against the Celtics would say something in regards to the Warriors' future this season – that they’re able to be greater than competitive in a loaded Western Conference.
All of this is simpler said than done.
I don't wish to attempt to recreate history, however the Warriors won the title against a younger, greener Celtics team because Steph Curry ascended to the next level of basketball life and Andrew Wiggins – an All-Star starter that season – to that one level played.
That formula have to be in place on Wednesday, considering that Jayson Tatum – who Warriors coach Steve Kerr famously benched on the Olympics this summer – is playing just like the league's MVP and the Celtics have arguably the league's best fullback, Jrue Holiday, added. because these two teams faced one another on the largest stage in the sport.
But while the Warriors are betting that Wiggins could have an enormous season (what else can they do?), betting on a wild card normally doesn't work. And while Curry looked good in his return to the court against the Wizards on Monday, I don't should inform you why which may not be an excellent barometer for Wednesday.
Of course, the Warriors even have Strength In Numbers Redux this season. Kerr rocks a 12-, sometimes 13-man rotation and strives to remain grounded with fresh legs. The high talent level of this squad should make up for the general low ceiling.
But the Celtics aren't exactly skinny. Every yr, general manager Brad Stevens finds one other team's backup player to show him right into a solid rotation player to enrich the Celtics' always-strong second unit.
This yr, that player is Neemias Queta, who, as a fast aside, I once saw working with James Wiseman at a G League game in Stockton.
While the Warriors can have the most effective bench within the NBA this season – first in net rating based on NBA.com stats – the Celtics are ranked seventh and have the most effective starting unit within the league. (The Warriors check in there at No. 3, despite an ever-changing starting lineup.)
Oddly enough, for those who drop all pretense and just go by what we've seen this season, the Warriors and Celtics must be a fairly even matchup.
Of course it doesn't work that way.
If the Warriors lose on Wednesday, the bubble around this team will burst. But in the event that they can play and even win against the Celtics, it's an invite to imagine that this yr won't be just like the last two.
Until Friday then. Then the method begins again.
So are these dubs real?
Ask me on Sunday evening.
Originally published:
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