Golden State Warriors in Danger as Houston Rockets Accelerate

When you look at the rearview mirror in a car, the warning label states that Objects May Be Closer Than They Appear. A month ago, the Golden State Warriors sat comfortably within the NBA’s Play-In Tournament for one of the last two playoff seeds. A sudden Rockets liftoff has since lifted Houston to a single game behind the Warriors with ten games left in the regular season. 

“Warriors, come out to play”

Tari Eason IG Story. 😂

(h/t @AhnFireDigital)

pic.twitter.com/GBo3mULS5e

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) March 28, 2024

Future Hall-of-Famer Steph Curry cannot be a healthy playoff scratch, especially since ten teams are getting an opportunity. That is a huge legacy stain. Should the Golden State Warriors be worried?

Defiant Champs

So far, the Warriors have talked a good game. Here is four-time champion Draymond Green responding to Tari Eason’s video.

Draymond cooked Tari Eason 😭😭😭

"I'm a little suprised that he hasn't played in a game since January 1st. So it's kind of tough to come out yelling 'come out and play' and you're not gonna play.” pic.twitter.com/o6qiSFzbxo

— ³⁰🌞(@GameOnSteph_) March 28, 2024

The Warriors believe they can make the play-in tournament and give themselves a shot at the playoffs. An 8^th-seed Golden State Warriors team is not exactly chopped liver, even if the defending champion Denver Nuggets end the season as the one seed.

Poor Season

This Golden State Warriors season has been bad for several reasons. I would point to March 03, 2024, as the reason they suddenly became in danger of missing the playoffs. This was the 52-point beating that the Warriors absorbed from the NBA-leading Boston Celtics, a blowout that spiraled into seven losses in thirteen games. 

The Rockets have only lost once in that same time span. Houston is the hottest team in the league, led by budding superstar Jalen Green and the potential return of leading scorer Alperen Sengun.

The reasons for wallowing near the bottom of the standings in the first place are numerous. Coach Steve Kerr’s continuous losing all summer brought negative momentum. His inability to integrate Jonathan Kuminga properly caused ruffles within the organization. Mind you, it’s an organization that made zero roster improvements at the trade deadline (other than a cost-cutting Cory Joseph trade to the Pacers).

 I wrote about Draymond Green’s early-season nonsense. Seeing Green’s first-quarter ejection from the last game tells me nothing has changed.

This how family be talking about your cousin when he go to jail for the 15th time https://t.co/I5oJHtg9IQ

— The Hood Therapist (@OhhMar24) March 28, 2024

Steph Curry

The more pressing issue of late has been Steph Curry’s shooting slump. Don’t get it twisted. He is the greatest shooter of all time, and his numbers are impressive overall. But he is the bar setter, and this doesn’t cut it.

Steph Curry has shot below 36% from the field in 4 of his last 5 games 🥶

6-of-21 FG (28.6%)
6-of-19 FG (31.6%)
5-of-14 FG (35.7%)
12-of-24 FG (50%)
4-of-14 FG (28.6%)

Will the Warriors star break out of this slump? pic.twitter.com/4tZlI6rzHU

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) February 29, 2024

Steph’s most recent games include a 9-21 loss to Minnesota and 13-28 overall in a two-game Florida road trip. Additionally, his minutes have run pretty high for a 36-year-old (33 minutes a game). Of course, these conditions are made worse when Draymond is unavailable to play.

With the Draymond drama happening again and the Rockets looming, media pundits have questioned Curry’s leadership.

Steph’s reaction to Draymond’s ejection pic.twitter.com/5TH5DYC9w1

— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 27, 2024

Coach Kerr’s reaction to Steph Curry getting emotional after Draymond Green’s ejection.

“Every game being so important. And us fighting for everything and for Draymond to get kicked out three minutes in. It was really unforgivable. And I think Steph may have been a little upset with himself for not pulling Draymond out of there but I think mostly it was just, come on, man.”

(via @WillardandDibs on X)

The Schedule

The bad news for the Warriors is that they still have the Houston Rockets on their schedule for a game (in Houston). Golden State only has four games left at home, and most games are played against teams with something to play for.

There is good news, however. The Warriors own the tie-breaker with the Rockets, meaning Houston is essentially two games back from supplanting Golden State in the standings.

Updated West Standings ‼️

– Pelicans move within 0.5 GB of 4th

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📲 https://t.co/qxl6KAw32T pic.twitter.com/hr89ierGzk

— NBA (@NBA) March 29, 2024

That April 04 Warriors game in Houston will be a must-watch on television. Do you think the Rockets will overtake the Golden State Warriors for the final playoff seed? Let me know in the comments below.

Photo Credit for featured cover image: Getty Images.

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