It’ll take some time to be rid of the taste the Warriors left San Antonio with on Saturday night after blowing a 17-point lead with a minute left in the third quarter, only to lose to the Spurs by 10. The Warriors now have a month’s worth of games played this season, however, and undoubtedly have been better than what was expected.
Sitting atop the Western Conference standings with a 12-4 record wasn’t predicted by anyone. Golden State is tied for the third-most wins in all the NBA, and the Warriors clearly are one of the best teams in basketball.
How have they been in every fact of the game? Let’s break it all down by grading the Warriors’ first month.
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Offense
Steve Kerr made it clear from the first time he assessed his team that this group is going to play fast and rain down threes, with an emphasis on being smarter with the ball. Those boxes have been checked, for the most part.
The Warriors are top five in points per game (117.6), assists per game (30.2), 3-point attempts per game (41.6) and 3-pointers made per game (15.8), plus also in pace (101.6). They’re seventh in 3-point percentage (37.9 percent) and seventh in offensive rating (115.0).
In a sense, the Warriors have been both better and worse at taking care of the ball. They’re league average in turnovers per game (14.6), which ranks 15th overall, an improvement from finishing 23rd in the NBA last season. But that also was when they averaged 14.3 turnovers per game.
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Turnovers undoubtedly have hurt the Warriors in their successful start to the season. They only had 10 turnovers in their loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night, but 21 in their first loss to the LA Clippers, 19 in their second loss to them and 17 in their blowout from the Cleveland Cavaliers.
They only have one player averaging more than 20 points per game, but also four who are shooting better than 40 percent from three. Moses Moody is close behind at 39.7 percent, followed by Lindy Waters at 38.3 percent. De’Anthony was at 37.1 percent before his season ended due to injury.
The Warriors in their 12 wins have averaged 122.3 points on 31.3 assists and shot 39.3 on 3-pointers. When everything is going right, the entertainment of the Warriors’ offense has returned.
Grade: A-
Defense
Kerr also made it clear from the start that the Warriors had to establish themselves as a defense-first team again. The Warriors are top five in defensive rating (106.2), defensive rebounds per game, steals per game and opponents fastbreak points. Being better in transition was a main emphasis of Kerr’s.
The Warriors are playing defense with attitude again. They swarm. The pack of piranhas leads the league in contested shots per game, and are second in deflections.
A healthy Gary Payton II has made a huge difference. Draymond Green has consistently shown his all-time greatness at 34 years old. A slimmed-down Kevon Looney has been phenomenal defensively.
Grade: A-
Stars
We’re listing three players here: Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins. The first two are well-established stars who should save everyone’s time and get fitted for their Hall of Fame jackets now. Wiggins is borderline.
But his stats are back to his 2022 All-Star season when he averaged 17.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game on 46.6-percent shooting from the field and 39.3 percent from three. Wiggins now is at 17.4 points per game after his fourth straight 20-point game. He’s averaging 4.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists, shooting 47.7 percent overall and 40.8 percent on threes.
Green has a 109.7 defensive rating, the lowest on the Warriors. The numbers have lied. Watch the games, and you'll see Green is playing at an elite level defensively more often than not. On top of that, he’s been an offensive threat.
After a poor-shooting game in San Antonio, Green now is making 42.9 percent of his 3-pointers. That’s as sweet as a cherry on top can get for the Warriors. His 120.1 offensive rating is second to just Curry’s 120.6.
Curry’s 22.0 points per game would be his lowest in a full season since his second year as a pro. His offensive rating also is tied for the best of his career. Curry has taken over offensively when he’s had to in big wins. He’s empowering his teammates as a passer and still changes the entire court with his shooting prowess, shooting 43.7 percent from three.
Grade: A
Additions
The first month of the season has been an apology tour for general manager Mike Dunleavy. The four additions he brought in have proven to be great fits for Golden State.
When Melton was healthy, he was the perfect complement to Curry. And as Curry lost one Splash Brother, he added a new flamethrower in Buddy Hield, who looks like a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, averaging 15.9 points on 47.2/44.1/88.9 shooting splits. Kyle Anderson was made for Kerr and the Warriors, and their new starting shooting guard was acquired for the No. 52 overall pick in the draft.
A star didn’t come to San Francisco. The perfect players for a certain identity did.
Grade: A-
Youth
Like the Warriors’ 2022 championship team, veterans around the stars have played important roles. The youth of the Warriors haven’t taken a huge leap, nor have they taken huge steps back.
Moses Moody has cooled off lately but has been a threat from long range. But his offensive rating is the second-worst on the Warriors, as is his defensive rating. Jonathan Kuminga’s shot continues to regress, and he fell out of the starting lineup.
Trayce Jackson-Davis has shown he can be a play making hub out of the block, and is the only player aside from Green to start every game. But his force was felt differently when he first cracked the starting lineup last season. Brandin Podziemski is pressing and has gone 10 of 54 on threes, good for an 18.5-percent clip.
There’s a lot to like from the group. There also are a lot of areas for improvements, and plenty of time to do so.
Grade: B-
Health
Curry hasn’t missed a large chunk of games because of an injury. He left a loss to the Clippers early and then missed the next three games. Wiggins missed two to an injury, and a couple have missed a game from illness.
It hasn’t been the worst-case scenario. Underselling the importance of Melton’s injury also is a mistake. In the first three games he returned from missing five because of a back injury, Melton averaged 14.3 points and shot 45 percent from three. He played 47 minutes total with Curry and had a 38. 4 net rating – a 136.5 offensive rating and 98.1 defensive rating.
His 97.4 defensive rating in the six games he played was the best on the Warriors. Melton’s loss is major.
Grade: B
Coaching
The Warriors’ bench needed an infusion of new voices. In came Terry Stotts for the offense and Jerry Stackhouse for the defense. Kerr has leaned on both, and the players have been all ears. Kerr can’t lose a challenge and has been impressive roaming the sidelines.
Questionable decisions are inevitable. But Kerr’s ability to use 11, 12 or even more players on a nightly basis is looking much easier than it’s supposed to be. He has pulled the right strings over and over again.
Grade: A
Overall
The way the Warriors were built was by depth. Perhaps nothing has been more of a positive thus far. Nobody is playing more than 30 minutes a night. Curry’s 29.7 minutes per game lead the Warriors. Seven players are averaging at least 20 minutes, and 11 play 15 minutes or more.
This is the vision the Warriors had, and it’s coming to fruition, probably better than they imagined. Their four losses have shown their weakness. Those aren’t aplenty, though.
Grade: A-