Blue Man Hoop
Fansided

Warriors have everything to prove over their next two games

By Nathan Beighle

OAKLAND, CA - MARCH 8: Quinn Cook #4 and Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors high five against the Denver Nuggets on March 8, 2019 at ORACLE Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - MARCH 8: Quinn Cook #4 and Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors high five against the Denver Nuggets on March 8, 2019 at ORACLE Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Golden State Warriors next two games will test the team’s fortitude just a handful of weeks prior to the start of the 2019 NBA playoffs.

Yes, the Golden State Warriors need to prove that they’re still the Western Conference’s top team. Although they’ve won two straight championships, they have to maintain the underdog mentality that’s brought them this far.

That type of energy is what we need to see from them over their next two games. The Warriors have two difficult road tests against arguably the two best teams in the West not named Golden State.

They will travel to play Houston tonight. They have yet to defeat the Rockets, losing to Houston even when they were without superstar and MVP candidate James Harden. They’ve lost to Houston three times.

What will a fully healthy Houston team do to a Golden State team without Kevin Durant?

Well, let’s hope it doesn’t get ugly. The Dubs need to prove that even a depleted Warriors team can hang with the Rockets. They can’t just say they were without Kevin Durant and expect his return to make everything alright again.

The second of the two games is against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Warriors beat the Thunder on the NBA’s second game of the season. Then, a few weeks later, the Thunder dominated Golden State, beating the Dubs by 28.

Since then, Paul George and Russell Westbrook have helped Oklahoma City rip through the West. Sitting as the West’s No. 3 seed, the Thunder will be one of the toughest teams to face in the postseason, and without playing OKC for over four months, it’ll be crucial Golden State proves they can beat the rejuvenated Thunder team.

Outside of another matchup with the Nuggets, the Warriors won’t have many primetime, high-profile opponents until the postseason. While they may dominate the remainder of the season, it’d be more impressive to just dominate the next two games.

Ever since their historical 73-9 season, the Dubs haven’t gone all out during the regular season. Well, for these two games, they should do everything it takes to down a few of the West’s most formidable opponents.

Next. 3 ways Stephen Curry can lead the Warriors out of their slump. dark

At the end of the day, these two games won’t determine their postseason. What they will do is quite the nerve coursing through their fans who have watched the Dubs slip up over the last few games.

Home/Warriors News