Warriors finish at No. 8 and play the Blazers in the opening round
Although they had Klay Thompson in 2019, the Warriors have shown that they can handle the Portland Trail Blazers. Stephen Curry has had Damian Lillard‘s number, and it’d be great to see that matchup for one game.
Right now, if the playoff started today, the Warriors would have to take on the Spurs. While San Antonio is a team they could beat, the Spurs are a gritty team.
To be fair, all these teams fighting for the spots in the play-in game have the ability to get and stay hot. Playing the Grizzlies or the Spurs isn’t necessarily ideal. On top of those two, Dallas could also be in contention to be in the tournament.
Golden State is 1-2 against the Blazers, but the playoffs are a different story. Curry can handle his own, and he’s proven that he take down a Blazers team that is remarkably similar to that of the 2019 one that Curry almost single-handedly demolished.
This would also be an ideal scenario and a way the Warriors could still manage a top-seven seed (beating the No. 8 seed in the first play-in game would award them the No. 7).