It is the proverbial “go time” for the injury-depleted Golden State Warriors. The Warriors enter perhaps the most important stretch of their 2024-25 campaign very shorthanded. Can the Dubs salvage their season?
Golden State has had its fair share of ups and downs this year. After retooling its roster in the offseason, the Warriors got off to a hot start and may have fooled themselves into thinking they were once again title contenders. However, the Warriors have won consecutive games twice since starting the season, winning 12 of their first 15 games.
What The Latest News Means For The Injury Depleted Golden State Warriors: Can The Dubs Salvage Season and 3 Players Who Need To Up Production
Since the calendar turned to 2025, Golden State has regained some of its previous winning form. The Warriors have won five of their nine January games and enter their Martin Luther King home contest against Boston on a two-game winning streak. They currently sit 11th in the West, though they and the 10th-place Phoenix Suns have identical 21-20 marks.
So, why do I believe this is a key part of Golden State’s season? The Warriors will be highly shorthanded, especially up front, for the foreseeable future. Also, six of the Dubs’ nine games before the NBA trade deadline are against teams with a winning record, including hosting the Suns on January 31.
Golden State has arguably played the NBA’s most daunting schedule. The Warriors have played an NBA-high 30 games against teams with a nonlosing record, posting a 13-17 record in those contests. These six games mean that they will potentially play 36 of their first 50 games versus teams with at least a .500 record.
The good news is that seven of Golden State’s next eight games are at home. However, the Warriors have only been average at home this year, going 11-10 with just a plus-0.6 scoring margin. The Dubs are 32-30 at the Chase Center since the beginning of last season.
Injuries Continue To Pile Up For Golden State
Part of the reason Golden State got off to a strong start was their health. While De’Anthony Melton suffered his season-ending injury after just six appearances, the Warriors remained relatively healthy, as seven of their regulars appeared in at least 14 games during this stretch—Stephen Curry missed three games while Andrew Wiggins sat out two.
However, the Warriors haven’t been nearly as “lucky” in that department. Buddy Hield is the only Warriors to appear in all 41 games, though Trayce Jackson-Davis has missed just one contest. Kyle Anderson, Lindy Waters III, Curry, Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Podiemski, and Gary Payton II have missed a combined 54 contests.
Draymond Green
According to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, Draymond Green will miss his eighth game of the campaign against Boston and will likely be out longer due to a calf strain. Green saw three minutes of action in the Warriors 122-114 Saturday victory over Washington before suffering the injury. It will mark his fourth absence in the past five games.
Green joins Anderson, Kuminga, and Podziemski on the sidelines for this afternoon’s game. Slated did add that there was some good news, as Curry planned to play.
“Draymond Green is out against the Celtics tomorrow, Left calf strain,” Slater tweeted. “No official update expected from Warriors until tomorrow, but he’s gonna miss some time. Steph Curry is questionable. Left ankle sprain. He indicated last night he planned to play. “Kyle Anderson also remains out with left gluteal bursitis. Jonathan Kuminga still rehabbing ankle sprain. Power forward spot is depleted.”
As Slater mentioned, Curry is officially listed as questionable. Curry left the Wizards game late in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury. Meanwhile, Anderson (hip) will miss his third straight game. Kuminga has been out since January 4 with a significant lateral right ankle sprain. However, the 22-year-old is out of the walking boot and is expected to be reevaluated later this week.
Podziemski (abdominal strain) will sit out his 11 straight, though it is possible that he will be available on Wednesday against Sacramento or Thursday versus Chicago. Steve Kerr told Danny Emerman of the Bay Area News Group that Podziemski scrimmaged for the first time on Friday, and there is a belief that if he is able to do so again tomorrow, he could return soon.
Update:
An hour before today’s tipoff, Slater reported that Steve Kerr said he expects Curry to play versus the Celtics, but he still had to go through warmups. Curry is indeed in the starting lineup.
Slater tweeted out an update on Green about 35 minutes before Celtics tipoff: “Draymond Green: Mild left calf strain, re-evaluated in a week, I’m told. Rules him out of the next four games at least.”
Slater added: “Steve Kerr said he is “hopeful” that Kyle Anderson and Brandin Podziemski could return later this week. Warriors face Kings, Bulls, Lakers on Wed, Thu, Sat.
Kerr’s Starting Options
With all the injuries, Kerr has a decision to make with his starting unit. Kerr has trotted out 23 first units, which is just four fewer than he used all of last season, and will use a seldom-used first five later tonight. Assuming that Curry does play, it is projected that Gui Santos will pick up the second start of his career as a power forward. Santos began the second half of the Wizards’ game on the court.
Santos made his first start two games ago when the Warriors defeated Minnesota 116-115, one of the recent games that Green sat out. The 22-year-old Brazilian turned in a solid performance against the Wolves with five points on 2 of 5 shooting, including 1 of 3 from the 3-point line, seven rebounds, and three assists in 21 minutes.
Dennis Schroder, Andrew Wiggins, Curry, and Jackson-Davis are expected to start alongside Santos, the same starting unit Kerr used against Minnesota. Kerr does have plenty of options if he chooses to, including slotting Wiggins at power forward. It is estimated that Wiggins has spent 24% of his minutes at the four this season, which equates to at least 200 minutes at that position in each of his last four seasons.
Other First Unit Options
Kerr has other starting options, including Moody, Waters, Hield, and Looney. Of the four players, Hield and Looney have the most starting experience. The Warriors are 5-5 with Hield in the starting lineup and 1-4 with Looney this season. It is unlikely Kerr will go with either one, as Hield has been just as productive off the bench as he has on it.
Meanwhile, Looney has been more productive as a reserve, though that hasn’t been the case throughout his career. Looney and Jackson-Davis are the only centers on the Warriors roster, and Kerr has not paired his bigs together this year.
Moody is 4-0 as a starter this year and has played some power forward, though the 22-year-old is better suited on the wing. Moody has been fantastic as a starter this year. Conversely, the Warriors are 4-5 when Waters opens with the first unit. Like Hield, his production has been similar, whether coming off the bench or starting.
Payton ultimately got the start against Boston. It is Payton’s fifth start of the season. The 32-year-old averages 6.5 points, 4.3 boards, and 2.0 assists in 18 minutes as a starter. The Warriors are 2-2 in games that Payton has started.
Slater starting lineup tweet: Warriors starters vs Celtics Steph Curry (PG), Dennis Schröder (SG), Gary Payton II (SF) Andrew Wiggins (PF), and Trayce Jackson-Davis (C).
3 Warriors Who Need To Step Up
Regardless of who Kerr ultimately decides to put in the starting unit, the Warriors will need several players to step up if they plan on making a real run at the playoffs.
Dennis Schroder
Schroder has been a huge disappointment since coming over from the Nets. Perhaps playing so much during the summer with the German National team has caught up to him, but the 31-year-old needs to step up for the Warriors to have any chance of making a run in the tough West. He will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Schroder, not known for his defense, has struggled on both ends in his 16 games with the Warriors. He averages 10.8 points and 4.5 assists and has shooting splits of 35.8/28.6/80.2.
A capable facilitator and scorer who can carry a team offensively, Schroder needs to be more consistent. He has scored in double figures in 10 of his 16 appearances, but the 20 points he scored against Washington were his most as a Warrior. He has yet to record a double with Golden State or dish out at least 10 assists.
Golden State is 7-9 with Schroder in the lineup. Schroder’s team-worst plus/minus rating is -6.6, which is 4.7 points worse than anyone else.
Brandin Podziemski
Podziemski had a surprising rookie season after the Warriors took the 21-year-old with the No. 19 overall pick in the 2023 draft. He finished fifth in Rookie of the Year voting. However, the 6-5 guard got off to a slow start shooting the ball and has struggled to recover from the abdomen issue.
The good news is that Podziemski started to turn his season around at the end of November. Podziemski is a solid two-way guard who can do a little of everything, though he needs at least 20 minutes of playing a game. Over his last 14 appearances between the end of November and the end of December, Podziemski produced 8.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.2 steals. More importantly, he connected on 1.4 treys a game, shooting 44.8% from the field and 41.7% from deep.
Moses Moody
Moody has produced eight points a game like last year, but he has not been as efficient despite knocking down a career-best 1.5 treys while making 39.2% of his attempts from deep. He has shown the ability to be a better rebounder and defensive player than he has been this year.
Final Word
If Golden State can navigate these injuries and tough stretch and maintain striking distance of the top 10, they will have a good chance to at least attempt to get to the eighth seed. Their schedule will get much easier after the trade deadline. According to Tankathon, the Dubs have the 13th easiest schedule the rest of the way, even counting their next nine games.
Saying that, Golden State needs another scorer unless Schroder miraclously gets things together over the final stretch. The Warriors have been linked to Jimmy Butler and Zach LaVine.
However, ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk doesn’t believe the Warriors will make a major move until the offseason. Youngmisuk did add that there is a belief around the league that they will make a play for Chicago’s Nikola Vucevic. Vucevic would give the Warriors the size they have been looking for at center for a while and a consistent second scorer. Wiggins is probably at his best when he is a team’s No. 3 scorer.
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