In the next few weeks, if games aren’t canceled, teams are really going to have their depth tried as Coviid-19 protocols start to set in. Thankfully, even if the Warriors struggle and miss key players, they should be fine in the long run.
They can thank themselves for a great start to the season giving them this wiggle room, especially if a player like Stephen Curry or Draymond Green has to go into health and safety protocols like Jordan Poole currently is.
The Golden State Warriors have the league’s best record, and it should help immensely as it seems more teams are struggling to field rotational players.
Poole was missed against the Celtics in the Warriors’ four-point victory. However, as it goes in Golden State, the next man up has to fill in their spot. Damion Lee did just that as Poole found himself not at TD Garden.
The Warriors, with the win in their second to last game among the five in their East Coast road trip, pushed their record on the season to 24-5.
It’s the best in the NBA, and it will give them some breathing room for any worst-case-scenario type issues that could be in the near future. Players like Joel Embiid have hit the league’s health and safety protocols. The Sixers struggled without him on the court.
Every team needs to be preparing for life without key players and many are already there. The Warriors, despite having Poole in health and safety protocols, have yet to be without Green or Curry, the latter of which dropped 30 against Boston.
Only Curry and Andrew Wiggins topped 15 points for Golden State against the Celtics. While they should feel like their roster has competent depth, they will struggle if any of their four-best players go down.
With that in mind, the Warriors could lose their next ten and still be a top-eight team in the Western Conference. They’ve been that good this season, and it will be extremely helpful as the season continues.
Golden State has played hard, aggressive basketball. They deserve the league’s best record, and with Klay Thompson and James Wiseman potentially returning in the near future, everything is set up for their success even if plagued by Covid-19 in the near future.