Anonymous NBA exec picks Warriors as favorites to win West originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
In the hours after the Warriors’ brave comeback win over the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday night, one that took Golden State to two games over .500, sniper Klay Thompson issued a warning to other NBA teams.
“I promise you this, if we’re healthy, nobody wants to see us in the postseason,” Thompson said on NBC Sports Bay Area. “I promise you that.”
It turns out that some of his colleagues agree.
During an interview Wednesday with KNBR’s Tom Tolbert and Matt Kolsky, NBA reporter Howard Beck revealed a relevant conversation he had in league circles.
“I just got off the phone with a Western Conference team leader an hour ago and we were talking about who the favorites are [in the conference]?†Howard said. “He didn’t even mention the nuggets. He said, “I think it’s the Warriors or the Clippers.” “
NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets have ranked No. 1 in the West playoffs since Dec. 20, but recent playoff flops seem to speak more than their dominance this season.
Denver has made four consecutive postseason appearances but has only advanced past the second round of the playoffs once. The Nuggets defeated the Utah Jazz and Clippers in the NBA bubble, only to fall to the Los Angeles Lakers in five games in the 2020 Western Conference Finals.
The Warriors, on the other hand, are the complete opposite. They’ve struggled to gather any semblance of momentum in more than a few straight games this season. Golden State is 32-30 after 62 contests but still has its dynastic core of Thompson, Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala, the proud holders of four championship rings.
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“Every bit of data, all the logic, everything should tell us it’s already over,” Beck told KNBR. “The Warriors can’t do that. No one gets that deep into the season with that record and all the stats that go with it…and still win a championship. It just doesn’t happen. So by any logical indicator, we should fire them and say what they’re going to do next season.
The story goes on
“But whether it’s sentimentality, whether it’s a stubborn belief in the names and the faces and their resumes that we still see on this list – I’m not ready to dismiss them. It’s just not me.”
The Warriors have 20 games to go before the anonymous Western Conference executive is right. They expect Curry to be healthy again sometime next week.
With Curry’s return, the Warriors can continue their quest to defend their 2022 title.
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