Tank?

[Old_Blue]

I think of the current Warriors team as being like a stolen car - The parts are worth more than the whole. The team definitely has some interesting and talented players. They simply lack chemistry. And, for good reason. Only four healthy leftovers from the last championship contender. Seven players with one year or less of NBA experience. If the team reaches the depths of suckitudeness typically associated with tanking, it won't in fact be due to an effort to tank. It'll simply be a byproduct of haphazard roster construction. Which, unfortunately, typically leads straight to the chop shop. In the meantime, maybe our slogan is "Drive it like it's stolen?"

[Coxy]

I want to send Wiseman film of Draymond and JaVale ooping. Because that some of that will make this a fun season no matter what.

I don't think you'd need to, Draymond would have already done that, and the practices with them in it would have been directed to it. Green knows what a weapon that is, and it's actually one of the elite things that he does. Any long, above the rim C would know that playing with Draymond will bring these opportunites to yam multiple times a game on peoples skulls.

[wco81]

I think of the current Warriors team as being like a stolen car - The parts are worth more than the whole. The team definitely has some interesting and talented players. They simply lack chemistry. And, for good reason. Only four healthy leftovers from the last championship contender. Seven players with one year or less of NBA experience. If the team reaches the depths of suckitudeness typically associated with tanking, it won't in fact be due to an effort to tank. It'll simply be a byproduct of haphazard roster construction. Which, unfortunately, typically leads straight to the chop shop. In the meantime, maybe our slogan is "Drive it like it's stolen?"

Yes they will try to win, especially these next 7 games.

By a month or month and a half from now, they will be around the 25-35 game mark and the record will tell whether they can compete. We will be able to project where they end up or could end up in the seedings.

I think if the team believes it could at least get into the play-in tournament, they won't deliberately tank, like minimizing Curry and Draymond's minutes.

But if 7-10 appears to be their ceiling for the season by mid February, there's a good argument to be made for them to go for the draft positioning.

[shazam_guy]

I want to send Wiseman film of Draymond and JaVale ooping. Because that some of that will make this a fun season no matter what.

I don't think you'd need to, Draymond would have already done that, and the practices with them in it would have been directed to it. Green knows what a weapon that is, and it's actually one of the elite things that he does. Any long, above the rim C would know that playing with Draymond will bring these opportunites to yam multiple times a game on peoples skulls.

I don't doubt it. I just want to make sure, because that's something Wiseman can do immediately with length alone. I suspect the timing will come very quickly to both of them.

[wco81]

So far, 3-2 in the home stand, splitting with the Blazers and Clippers, who are suppose to be locks as WC playoffs teams.

Now would be good to at least split the next two games vs. Raptors and Pacers.

Ultimately Warriors may be 6-10 seed, unless they really raise their shooting. This comeback win vs. Clippers, they really shot the lights out. If they shot like this the rest of the season, then they could raise their sights even higher.

I think Oubre is pretty much a lost cause. Not saying he can't improve his shooting over the 60 remaining games but he hasn't shown any indications to make you think that will happen.

So to minimize the loss in acquiring him, Warriors need to be able to use their first round pick, that is finish out of the top 10. Even a pick in the mid teens could turn into a useful player, maybe they could pick up a wing who could do much of the same things Oubre could do, mainly defend one of the best perimeter players on the other team, on a rookie salary.

They still have the DPE in their back pocket and if the team looks to be contending for a top 4 seed, Lacob may approve using it. But if they do end up top 4, that means they'd lose their first rounder and there's no guarantee they'd get Minnesota's pick this year.

They definitely need at least 1 first rounder in the top half of the 2021 draft, to have someone likely to be at least a rotation player, if not a potential star.

[SinceGatlingWasARookie]

Oubre is not a lost cause. Pietrus was not a lost cause. Some things take time. As longs as Oubre knows he will get a better contract by fitting with a team than by playing as a individual everything will be fine. Dumb players can be useful.

Tank? Hell no. We are going to to win 53 ganes and a playoff found. We are going to get Wiseman some playoff experience.. That will come in handy for our championship in 2022

[wco81]

53 wins in a 72 game season would be better than a .736 winning percentage, the equivalent of just over 60 wins in an 82 game season.

Warriors won over 60 games once while KD was on the team. They’re not winning 53 games with this roster.

In fact only a couple of teams may win 53 games this season.

[Mylie10]

My goal has always been sixth seed this year without Klay. I’m still on it.

And the homer in me will let you know we’re only a game and a half out of first place in the West lol

[wco81]

Sixth seed may put GSW right around #20 in the draft, depending on what the EC teams do record wise.

That could mean no pick, if Minnesota finishes in the top 3.

As a 6th seed they might have to win at least 6 playoff games which would mean winnin a first end series vs a 3rd seed and then winning at least 2 or 3 games in the second round vs either a 1st or 2nd seed.

That would be a very respectable showing but is it worth a first round pick? Or maybe they end up with #18-20 pick.

If the Minnesota pick looks like a definite lotto pick, even say #14, then yeah it wouldn’t hurt as much to lose their own pick.

[SinceGatlingWasARookie]

53 wins in a 72 game season would be better than a .736 winning percentage, the equivalent of just over 60 wins in an 82 game season.

Warriors won over 60 games once while KD was on the team. They’re not winning 53 games with this roster.

In fact only a couple of teams may win 53 games this season.

i forgot about the short season. 48 wins then. Don't coun't these guys out. Draymond's starts slow. By the end of the year when teams fully commit to doubling Curry Draymond will be racking up the assusts.

[Mylie10]

I want the sixth seed draft pick be damned

[Jerry Maine]

I want the sixth seed draft pick be damned

Agreed

With an eye on 2022 playoff experience is worth more to this group than taking on another young player ie 10-20th who at best could give us some minutes off the bench, but possibly not for a season or two, if ever. It's a crapshoot and getting Wiggins, Jimmy Wiseguy, Pascall, Lee and Mulder some playoff experience would be better value. We're playing with the house's money this year so the guys can play loose and soak it up.

The only tank I see will be Minny going for top 3, will be interesting if we play them late in the season with our seeding set and they're trying to crater.

[wco81]

48 wins equates to 55 wins in an 82 game schedule.

Still seems a big reach.

While beating the Clippers was great, they have a tendency to blow big leads. The other thing is, these 2-game series this season, most teams are not sweeping.

GSW is going to have to demonstrate that it could play like this regularly.

As for playoffs experience, I don’t think that matters to Curry or Dray. But obviously it would to JW, if he’s getting key playing time by the end of the season. Also Paschall, who has to keep playing as well as he has been for the Warriors to get into the playoffs.

It would help some of the vets who haven’t been to the playoffs much, such as Wiggins, Lee, Mulder, Baze. But Baze and Oubre are unlikely to be on the team beyond next year so getting them playoffs minutes doesn’t help GSW.

[Mylie10]

40 - 32 is my goal, not 48

[wco81]

Like I said before, in about a month to month and a half, they will have more clarity on how competitive they could be in getting a playoffs spot and in their chances once in the playoffs.

Actually the trade deadline is March 25.

Warriors have games scheduled out to 3/3, at which point the NBA will schedule the rest of the games. At that point, they will have played 37 games, just over the half way point.

So they will have a real good idea of their playoffs prospects as well as how they compete against top teams like the Lakers.

At that point, they could go all-in and try to get a very good player like Rose using the DPE, because I think they'd have to plop in tens of millions more in luxury taxes?

Or make some other moves to strengthen the team.

But like I said, even by about the 25 game mark, we'll have a much clearer picture of this team's ceiling.

[wco81]

So 4-2 on the 7-game home stand so far.

Last game is vs. Indy, which should be another good test.

Only real bad game is the first Blazers game, though this Toronto game wasn't so great, as many players who'd played well failed to continue the positive trend.

They are guaranteed 4-3 a winning record.

But they will continue to be tested, with the Pacers in the next game, Denver which has won 2 straight after a poor start, and Suns and Lakers who are #2 and #1 in the WC right now.

[Mylie10]

Only teams I’m actually worried about are teams that have been together a bit and have a veteran established core.

Indiana kind of fits into that mold. But if we continue to battle with defense we should be able to hang with most teams.

[wco81]

So after a surprise victory vs. the Lakers, Warriors are 7-6, in the #7 spot.

Next 10 games, 6 of them are vs. teams with current losing records, though the 2 of the games are in Dallas, with the Mavs currently 1 game under .500. Knicks are also one game below .500.

So Spurs, Knicks and Mavs are teams with around the same record, Utah and Boston are clearly with better records and the two games vs. the Wolves and one game vs. Detroit are the only ones vs. teams with clearly worst records.

If draft order was set on current records, GSW would not get the Wolves pick but would keep their own FRP, though it would be out of the lottery. Or does the play-in tournament results count towards the draft order? Will those games actually count towards the eventual W-L record for the season?

[HiRez]

Unless something terrible happens (ie. Steph out) and we get a top pick, I would like to both keep our pick and make the playoffs. To thread that needle, they probably have to win something like 37-42 games. The fewer games they can win and still sneak into the playoffs (maybe via play-in), the better. They're currently on pace for about 39 wins, but the play-in wrinkle could help them make the playoffs with fewer games won.

[TB]

I think the next 7 games will really outline where we stand in the West.

- 5-2 or better and we really are thinking playoffs.
- 4-3 or 3-4 and we probably feel a little less confident than we do now, but with a glimmer of hope that as the team gels maybe we could make a run.
- 2-5 or worse and we probably start getting excited about two top 10 picks.

Here are those games:
Spurs
Knicks
Jazz
Wolves
Wolves
Suns
Pistons