Warriors ready to embrace vastly different role amid fallen expectation

From NBA champions, to a second-round playoff exit, and most recently to a Play-In Tournament elimination. It's fair to say the Golden State Warriors have fully transitioned from being the hunted, to now being the hunter.

In fact, few believe the Warriors can even be a legitimate hunter in title contention next season. Their offseason was good but not great, having failed to land another All-Star player though not without trying on multiple fronts.

Brandin Podziemski and the Golden State Warriors are looking forward to proving the NBA world wrong next season

Many believe Golden State will be around the Play-In Tournament again, perhaps slightly better if their young players can take a significant leap and Draymond Green doesn't replicate his suspension drama from last season.

But very few think the Warriors can reignite their fading dynasty, with the contrast between the past and present seemingly stretched further thanks to the departure of 5x All-Star and franchise legend Klay Thompson this offseason.

Nevertheless, Golden State appear eager to prove the doubters wrong and embrace the underdog tag, something that's been a scarce label over the past decade where they've won four NBA championships.

"They don't think that we're the Warriors that we were before, and for us, I think it's just the best feeling when you don't have anything to lose out there, and you just go out and prove people wrong," Brandin Podziemski told Laura Britt of NBC Sports Bay Area.

It's interesting that Podziemski is still paying tribute to the previous championship version Warriors, particularly when he himself wasn't part of that experience. In fact, only five players who saw rotation minutes in the 2022 Finals are still on the roster -- Green, Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney and Gary Payton II. Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody were each on the roster, but had no Finals impact as first-year players.

If Golden State are intent on keeping this timeline alive, then despite what Podziemski says, that does put pressure on them and give them something to lose. With Curry still somewhere near his prime at 36-years-old, any season that doesn't result in a deep playoff run could be considered a disappointment.

While that may not be the expectation among league-wide analysts and pundits, Warrior fans still rightfully anticipate a bounce-back season from a team that's delivered so much success across the past 10 years. That in itself means there's plenty to lose despite the underdog tag.