Rolling, rolling, rolling.
The Warriors have won five straight, Steph Curry now has 4 of the top 5 3-point performances in NBA history and 8 of the remaining 11 games on the schedule will be played at Oracle Arena.
The good news doesn’t stop there.
Kevin Durant started taking full movement shots again Tuesday at Mark Cuban’s Palace in Dallas — Golden State beat Dallas 112-87. Klay Thompson has actually been the hottest scorer on the roster during this five-game winning streak, where he’s averaging nearly 28 points per game. Draymond Green initially ignited the spark of this current run, winning a game against Philadelphia 106-104 using his defensive switch, and the tenacity hasn’t slowed down on that end.
Shots are falling, Kerr has tinkered with the rotations to get Curry going again at the end of quarters. Tuesday the Warriors recorded their 43rd 30-assist game of the season, tying their franchise-best mark from last season.
Believe it or not, but Durant’s absence challenged the Warriors to go through adversity at the perfect time on the NBA schedule — right before the playoffs.
Other than the occasional beef with Russell Westbrook, this regular season has been a snoozer. When the Warriors had lost three straight, Kerr said in all seriousness after a practice, “I kinda like it.” Having gone through the turbulence and challenge of adjusting to a major injury like Durant, the Warriors are carrying a valuable experience into the postseason — where bumps and bruises tend to mount. They know how to adjust without one of their stars, and they know that means asking more from everyone.
The core — Curry, Thompson and Green — didn’t realize how much Durant compensated for the loss of Harrison Barnes and Andrew Bogut. The Warriors got the best offensive forward in the NBA instead of Barnes’ corner 3’s. KD defended the post better than originally anticipated when he signed on July 4, softening the blow of Bogut’s departure. He made up for two players and then some.
We originally thought the adjustment period for the Warriors was going to be when Durant first arrived. But the most critical test of the season came in the middle of March, when the players were exhausted and the coaches were frustrated and the rest of the league was still giving the Dubs their A-game night-in and night-out.
It wasn’t easy. In fact, it got ugly. The Splash Brothers combined to go 28-of-109 on the East Coast roadie. A hectic schedule kept the team off the practice courts and stewing inside hotel rooms about their funk. But they stayed true to a formula the rest of the league is trying to copy: 3-point shots, extra passing, switch on defense until the other team’s head explodes.
And with a slew of home games remaining, the expectation is to carry this positive energy into April postseason.
Keep this in mind: Golden State’s path through the Western Conference has been getting more challenging every year. The first time around it was a sweep over the Pelicans, a 4-2 win over the Grizzlies and a 4-1 win over the Rockets. A year ago, it was a 4-1 win over the Rockets, a taxing 4-1 series win over Portland and an epic 4-3 comeback over the Thunder.
They’ve yet to face the Spurs in the postseason and they’ve yet to beat — or play at full strength — Gregg Popovich this year. Less so than the previous years, the golden ticket doesn’t appear to be in this team’s back pocket. They are going to be pushed to the brink again in a do-or-die format against San Antonio.
What does this current winning streak mean? Finally, five months into the season — and really for the first time in three regular seasons — the Warriors hit a snag. They looked human for an extended period of time. The reaction to a three-game losing streak was actually kind of hilarious.
Whether the competition is cupcake or not (no pun intended) we’ve seen this team respond in a moment of dilemma. Curry, Thompson and Green could still carry this team back to the NBA Finals.
Knowing that can’t hurt come May.
