A reality that has to be accepted: it is almost impossible for the Golden State Warriors to continue to rely on the original team to attack the championship.
Ten years ago, the Golden State Warriors were born, and they have reached the top all the way, and they have also fallen to the bottom several times during this period. While the setbacks and pain may have been far greater than those experienced by other dynasties in the past, it seemed worth it to them.
From 2015 to 2019, the Golden State Warriors were the No. 1 team in the entire league, and after five years of triple crown, they were once considered by fans to be the end of the dynasty, but once again relied on the original core team to return to the championship in 2022. In the moment of winning the championship in 2022, after going through the slump of the previous two years and being underestimated, the Warriors reminded everyone with the championship trophy not to forget the strength of this team.
However, this year's failures seem to be different from previous years.
In the 2023-24 season, the Golden State Warriors were defeated by the Kings in the play-offs, judging from the content of the game, whether it is technical and tactical or physical condition, the Warriors are completely crushed by the opponent.
The Warriors went straight out of the play-in tournament, and after the game, team coach Steve Kerr spoke to reporters:
"I'm very lucky to be here with these great players, we have the highest honours that we have been in the finals and won several times, but there are highs and lows, life is like this, no one can stay at the top all the time."
After the play-off exit, the Warriors looked quite frustrated, but this frustration did not only come from the disappointment of not being able to make the playoffs, the sadness of the Warriors team far exceeded the disappointment after being eliminated from the playoffs; In the post-game press interview, coach Kerr continued to convey his love and gratitude to his subordinates, while Green was extremely depressed, looking at the crowd in front of him with empty eyes before answering reporters' questions.
Curry, the core of the team, is still the same as ever, giving a thoughtful answer to reporters' questions, but what is more unusual is that he used the words "frustrated" and "disappointed" to describe the team's loss in the play-offs, and then used this meaning to express the feelings of the whole team throughout the season. As for the interviews with the other players, although they all spoke after the game, they still have hope of winning the championship with the team's ability. However, they themselves seem to know that it is already quite difficult to realize this dream.
For the Warriors this season, in fact, their overall performance is not bad, especially in the second half of the season, the team played an excellent team tacit understanding. In the 39 games in the second half, the Warriors won 27 and came from behind to chase the play-offs in a hot form, which once seemed to reinvigorate the terrifying team of Green's time as the center's No. 5 position. At the same time, the team's new talent is also improving rapidly, with third-year Kuminga having been impressive all season, and several rookies such as Moody, Podemski, and Jackson Davis have far exceeded their original expectations.
Despite this, the Warriors suffered a heavy defeat in the first game of the playoffs. Can the Warriors get better next season after this result? It's an unknown but seemingly predictable question. The core players of the team have entered the end of the career of basketball players, and the young generation of players seems to be the only one who can barely carry the banner of the team, but the overall is still a little young, although the progress this season is obvious, but the current level is still embarrassing.
Previously, head coach Kerr said in an interview that when Curry is not on the court, Paul is the most reassuring player among all players, but combined with the team's performance after getting Paul this season, with the blessing of St. Paul, the team does not seem to have become as good as people imagined, Curry still needs to go all out, and the team is not gradually getting better because of the complete overdraft of Curry, and the Warriors still only have this one offensive starting point that can stably create offensive opportunities for themselves and their teammates.
The above problems basically come from within the Warriors, and externally, the biggest problem they need to face is that there have been many rising strong teams in the West, the Nuggets who failed to defend the title this season are at the peak of the team's core, and the Thunder, who has the first record in the West, is one of the youngest teams in the league in terms of average age, and the new Timberwolves Edwards is just 22 years old, and they have the Kings, Rockets, and Grizzlies behind them. With such a tough competitive environment, who can expect the Warriors to continue to improve next season?
Faced with a few big questions, I think most people shake their heads in the negative.
First and foremost is Klay Thompson's go-to-stay dilemma
Speaking to reporters after the play-off defeat, Green said: "It's either progressing or regressing, the league has been moving forward and it's going to get better in the future, so we've got to find a way to keep up." "Quite simply, the Warriors have to find ways to improve in the offseason if they want to keep getting results, but before they can make a change, they have to deal with Thompson.
Thompson became an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. This season, his personal average data per game and offense and defense are actually not bad, but the most unacceptable thing is his miserable performance in the play-offs, with 10 shots missed, and for the first time in his career, he scored zero points in the playoffs. It's no surprise that his performances have been awkward, and Thompson has had his share of slumps over the past two seasons, and it's clear that the trust placed in him by his teammates on the court is slowly changing.
Despite this, the core members of the team still hope that he can stay in the team, after all, he is a comrade-in-arms who has gone through the highs and lows together, and at this stage, he is still in a state where the combat power level is still online; And even if his stability continues to decline, the team of the Warriors dynasty still does not want to see him leave alone. As coach Kerr said, the team needs Thompson to create space to attack, and even though there are already some shooters on the team, there is clearly not enough shooters on the bench. Green, on the other hand, hinted that management didn't think it was a smart move to sign Thompson, but still wanted to keep him, which at least affirmed his past contributions to the team.
It's just that these expectations are likely to be fanciful, and according to previous league sources, the Warriors are preparing to lose the four-time champion veteran in free agency, as sports legend Shams puts it: a parting of the ways between a legendary player and a legendary team.
The second key point is Chris Paul, can the Warriors trade him for a good chip?
The team has offered high-priced contracts to secure Green, Curry and even Kerr in the coach's box, and in addition to Thompson, Paul's departure is another thorny problem that the Warriors need to face. His annual salary for next season is 30 million, of which 16 million is guaranteed. According to previous news reports, the Warriors have reached an agreement with Paul, and the two sides have agreed to postpone the guaranteed date of the 30 million contract, and the intention of this move is obvious, that is, Paul is cooperating with the Warriors to trade himself.
Although many players in the team have praised Paul, they have been helped by Paul Sr. to a greater or lesser extent, both on and off the field. But even so, he is a veteran guard who is about to turn 39 after all, and the competitiveness he needs against the Warriors is completely mismatched. Coach Kerr also said in an interview that he admires Paul, but at the moment the team is struggling to let him get the playing time he wants. The Warriors' trade for Paul is a foregone conclusion, but it is still a little difficult for the team to rely on this veteran trade to bring about a real change.
Finally, there's Wiggins' trade value
Wiggins is currently facing no less trade trouble than Paul. Due to his poor performance this season, the trade value has also been severely affected. And the team should not include Kuminga, who is gradually improving, in the trade chip package for the time being, and choosing to add other young players such as Podzemski, Jackson Davis or Moody is not enough to help the team strengthen a star star, which is a more awkward situation.
That's what the Warriors have to face right now, and they themselves seem to think they can rely on the core of the original team to challenge for another championship trophy, but in reality, the prospects for the team's original roster to work together are not promising. The fine-tuning of the offseason was not enough to give fans a glimpse of the possibility of future championships. Even if they can maintain a certain strength through operation, if they want to win the highest honor again, shuffling and restructuring seems to be the most suitable path for them.