Over the last few seasons, the Golden State Warriors have kept their first-round picks, and they’ve made a few risky selections, ones that certainly could have been looked back on as better trading chips than actual picks.
However, that’s not going to be the case, and because of the Warriors scouting and trades, they’re going to be in good hands even when Stephen Curry calls it a career.
The Golden State Warriors can win without two-time MVP guard Stephen Curry going off, proving their future is in good hands.
When the Warriors welcomed the Toronto Raptors last night, Curry put up 6 points at half. He didn’t score in the third quarter at all.
Last season, if that were to happen, you would expect the Warriors to be down double figures if not by more than 20 points. However, the Warriors weren’t just winning but were annihilating the Raptors.
They were up 15 at the end of the third. This wasn’t just a one-time occurrence. Three-time All-Star forward Draymond Green and Curry were sidelined against the Pistons and the Warriors still managed to come out on top. They’ve managed to win four straight.
However, they haven’t necessarily won because of Curry. Last season, when Curry didn’t get to 20 points (including games he didn’t play), the Warriors were 5-12. This season, that hasn’t been the case. Curry has missed 20 just twice and the Warriors are 2-0.
It’s because of their culture, one that’s allowed Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole to become the player they were meant to be. That’s why Wiggins is having a career-best year in terms of efficiency.
Poole is becoming one of the best young guards, averaging more than 17 points per game. Poole, Wiggins, Kevon Looney and just about every non-Curry player is having a career year, and it’s because of the unselfishness that’s been instilled in this team.
They know how to play for each other and how to win. With players like Jonathan Kuminga who is 19, James Wiseman who is 20 and Moses Moody who is 21, Golden State has been creating a way about their young players that should help them well into the future.
Curry has still topped 35 six times. He’s still the focal point, but being able to win without his extreme, single-handed dominance, has been crucial and goes to show how well this team should performance with him getting further into his 30s.