Golden State Warriors Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pacific Notes: Baldwin, Wiseman, Sabonis, LeBron, Bryant

December 24th, 2022 at 8:06pm CST by Arthur Hill

As the Warriors‘ nightmarish road trip wrapped up Wednesday in Brooklyn, there were encouraging signs from two players who spent much of the season in the G League, writes C.J. Holmes of The San Francisco Chronicle. Given extended minutes in the blowout loss, rookie forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. posted career highs with 17 points and five three-pointers and he got to experience his first matchup with Kevin Durant.

“I mean, KD is going to be KD,” Baldwin said. “He’s going to hit his tough shots. He’s going to get to his spots and I thought a lot of guys stepped up and accepted that challenge.”

Also setting a career high was third-year center James Wiseman, who made 12-of-14 shots from the field and scored 30 points. Holmes notes that he showed a soft touch around the basket and sank his first three-pointer of the season.

“James did a great job tonight,” coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s fun to kind of see him let loose and get some minutes and make the most of it. He did a lot of good things offensively.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

After missing two games with an illness, Donte DiVincenzo should be able to return for the Warriors on Sunday against Memphis, tweets Kendra Andrews of ESPN. However, Andrew Wiggins (right adductor strain) and JaMychal Green (health and safety protocols) have both been ruled out.
X-rays confirmed that Kings big man Domantas Sabonis suffered an injury to his right hand Friday night, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Further testing will determine the extent of the damage, and Sabonis’ pain tolerance could factor into how much time he will miss. Sabonis leads the NBA with 23 double-doubles, and is one of three players averaging 10 rebounds and five assists per game, along with Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
With Anthony Davis injured, the Lakers need more from LeBron James than he’s capable of providing at nearly age 38, per Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. Goodwill points out that James is taking the second-most shots of his career, while his efficiency is at the lowest point since 2015. He’s also attempting more three-pointers and fewer free throws this season and doesn’t appear capable of leading L.A. to the playoffs without another star on the court.
Thomas Bryant, who left Friday’s game with a shoulder injury, isn’t on the Lakers’ injury report for Sunday, tweets Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register.

Warriors Notes: Klay, Kerr, Green, Reasons For Optimism

December 24th, 2022 at 4:01pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson remains highly motivated to win a fifth championship and to be named to his sixth All-Star game, per Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated. Thompson has been employing a very specific motivational keepsake to keep him inspired.

According to Beck, the 6’6″ swingman uses a San Francisco Chronicle newspaper clip taped above his locker, listing the only 26 players in league history to have more championship rings than him, to galvanize his efforts.

Thompson, in his first full season back with Golden State following injuries to his Achilles and ACL, has been taking a more relaxed approach to his career going forward.

“I’m way more Zen,” Thompson told Beck of his approach this year. “I’m just appreciative of playing early in the season and being healthy and competing and feeling great. Not having a fear of injury. I mean, we want our record to be as best as it can be, but that can change. … You could change that circumstance. When I was hurt, you couldn’t change a lot of things. So being able to actually do something about it—I got a whole new mindset of what I value and what not to care about.”

There’s more out of Golden State:

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr acknowledged that the 2022 champs are struggling following a brutal 143-113 defeat at the hands of the Nets on Wednesday, albeit without three starters, writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Golden State went 1-5 on its recent road trip. “You are what your record says you are,” Kerr said. “It was a bad road trip. We are 15-18, so we’re a below-.500 team, and we’ve got to find a way to reverse that.”
The Warriors grappled with mental health issues throughout their loss-heavy road trip, writes Andrews in a separate piece. “Right now, I think we are very fragile,” starting power forward Draymond Green remarked following a Friday practice. “You start going through these things and then you start believing them. Once you start believing them, it becomes who you are. The only way to break them is by being mentally tough.”
Though the Warriors do not seem to have recaptured their championship-winning magic just yet, there are reasons to believe the second half of the club’s 2022/23 season will be an improvement over the first, writes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “We understand what we need to do,” Green told Slater. “We also understand the circumstances. This won’t be the position we’re in for a long time, but it’s where we are right now. We’ve been a very good team at home. There will be a comfort for the guys. That’ll be helpful. Got to build momentum.” Kerr pointed to a miserable 0-5 road trip early in the season (Oct. 29 through Nov. 4) as the first sign of trouble this fall: “The whole trip was kind of a mess. We were trying new rotations, new guys. You can’t just say, ‘Oh, we screwed up in those five road games.’ You have to analyze what was happening. We weren’t where we needed to be. I felt like we were behind. We’ve been swimming upstream since. … If we’re 6-4 instead of 3-7, there’s a little bit more a sense of calm.”

Stephen Curry To Be Reevaluated In Two Weeks

December 24th, 2022 at 12:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Warriors star Stephen Curry, who was diagnosed earlier this month with a left shoulder subluxation, is “making good progress” in his recovery, the team announced today in a brief press release (Twitter link).

The Warriors declined to offer any specifics on Curry’s rehab process, simply stating that he’ll be reevaluated in two weeks.

That means the former MVP will remain sidelined through at least January 7, making him unavailable for the team’s next seven games. In all likelihood, Curry will miss more games beyond that, since he’s unlikely to be cleared to return immediately after being reevaluated.

The Warriors’ update doesn’t come as a surprise, since reports around the time of Curry’s diagnosis on December 15 suggested he was expected to remain on the shelf for at least three or four weeks and could potentially miss a month or more.

Golden State has struggled without Curry, dropping three of its last four games. All three of those losses were by double digits, including a 38-point shellacking in New York on Tuesday, followed by a 30-point blowout in Brooklyn on Wednesday. After three days off, the Warriors will be back in action on Christmas Day, hosting the ascendant Grizzlies.

Warriors Say Young Players Shouldn't Take Blame For Bad Losses

December 21st, 2022 at 11:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors have struggled on their road trip with a depleted roster, but veterans and coaches are trying to make sure the team’s younger players aren’t blamed, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “It’s kind of tough to put them out there in the fourth quarter and expect them to play great when we haven’t, even the starters, we didn’t play great,” Kevon Looney said after Tuesday’s loss. “… They could play better. I feel like they’re making steps in the right direction. They’ve been playing good down there in Santa Cruz. Maybe some game experience is good for them. It’s tough to get thrown in the fire like this at the end of a trip.”

Injury Updates: Hachimura, Zion, Maxey, Wiggins

December 21st, 2022 at 7:36pm CST by Arthur Hill

After missing more than a month with a bone bruise in his right ankle, Wizards forward Rui Hachimura is expected to play Thursday, tweets Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. The team announced that Hachimura, who has been out of action since November 18, will be available for the game at Utah.

Hachimura was originally diagnosed with ankle soreness, but an MRI revealed the bruise. Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. offered an encouraging progress report on Hachimura last week, saying he had started one-on-one contact work.

Hachimura’s return is welcome news for the Wizards, who had lost 10 straight games before winning Tuesday night in Phoenix. Washington is 12th in the East at 12-20, but the club is starting to get some of its rotation players back after a string of injuries. Bradley Beal returned Sunday after missing two weeks with a hamstring issue, and Delon Wright should be back soon after being sidelined since October 25 with a strained hamstring.

There’s more injury news to pass along:

Pelicans forward Zion Williamson has been placed in the league’s health and safety protocols and will miss Thursday’s game against the Spurs, according to Christian Clark of NOLA.com. Clark notes that Williamson was able to play 40 minutes Monday, but he wasn’t at practice today. New Orleans also plays on Friday and may be facing an extended stretch without Williamson and Brandon Ingram, whom coach Willie Green has already confirmed will miss both games.
Sixers coach Doc Rivers told reporters tonight that Tyrese Maxey, who has a broken bone in his left foot, is improving, but there’s still no set timetable for him to return, tweets Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice. “We will see him at some point,” Rivers said. “I just don’t know when.”
Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins may be targeting Christmas Day to try to return from a right adductor strain, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Wiggins is sitting out tonight’s game at Brooklyn, along with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Donte DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green.

Community Shootaround: Best Team In The West

December 21st, 2022 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

After defeating Memphis on Tuesday, the Nuggets are the Western Conference leaders, becoming the latest club to take its turn atop the West’s standings. The Nuggets, who also briefly held the No. 1 seed for a couple days in mid-November, are the fourth team to lead the West so far in December, as the conference’s would-be contenders play musical chairs with the top seeds.

Since the regular season began in October, eight different teams have held the No. 1 spot in the West, with five of those clubs spending at least six days atop the conference. Of those teams, only one has spent more than 10 days holding the top seed — the Suns have led the West for 23 days so far this season.

While the Suns look like a worthy contender to finish the season as the West’s best team, they’ve been in a tailspin in the last couple weeks, losing six of their last nine games. The absences of Cameron Johnson (due to injury) and Jae Crowder (away from the team) have hurt a club that has also dealt with injuries to starting guards Chris Paul and Devin Booker in recent weeks.

The Nuggets, the current West leader, have a strong starting group led by two-time MVP Nikola Jokic and own the conference’s second-best offense (behind Phoenix), but they still need to get more from their bench and improve their defense, which ranks 24th in the NBA.

The Trail Blazers have led the conference for 10 days so far this season, but have had some rough patches and currently hold the No. 7 seed, albeit just 2.5 games behind Denver. Like the Nuggets, they’ve had some defensive lapses and are focused on improving a unit that ranks 23rd in the league.

The Grizzlies and Jazz have each been atop the West for nine days, though they’ve appeared headed in opposite directions as of late. Even after losing their last two games, the Grizzlies have won nine of their last 12, while Utah has dropped 10 of 16 since opening the season with a 12-6 record. The Jazz have proven to be surprisingly resilient for a club viewed as a tanker entering the season, but it’s probably safe to assume the Grizzlies will be the better team the rest of the way.

The Pelicans held the West’s top seed for six days earlier this month and remain very much in the hunt for that spot, just one game behind the Nuggets. Former No. 1 pick Zion Williamson has been firing on all cylinders in the last few weeks and we still haven’t seen New Orleans at full strength — Brandon Ingram has been sidelined since November 25 and will add another dimension to the team’s offense once he’s ready to return from his toe injury.

The Warriors (three days) and Clippers (one day) technically held the No. 1 spot in the West briefly during the early part of the season and were considered two of the best bets to make the NBA Finals entering the fall. Injuries have disrupted their momentum so far, but as long as they secure playoff berths and get healthy by the spring, no one will want to face them in the postseason.

Of the remaining seven Western teams who haven’t led the conference at all this season, the Kings (16-13), Timberwolves (16-15), Mavericks (15-16), and Lakers (13-17) are probably the only legitimate threats to make the postseason. It may be be a long shot for a Sacramento squad lacking in playoff experience or a Lakers club lacking in depth to make much noise this season, but Minnesota and Dallas have the star power necessary to make a second-half push.

We want to know what you think. In what appears to be a wide open Western Conference field, which team do you think will finish the regular season as the No. 1 seed? Do you expect the same team to represent the conference in the NBA Finals, or do you like another club to win the West in the postseason?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your two cents!

Green Enters Health Protocols

December 20th, 2022 at 8:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors forward JaMychal Green has entered the league’s health and safety protocols, Kendra Andrews of ESPN tweets. Green, who missed Wednesday’s game against the Knicks, had one of his best outings for Golden State on Sunday. He contributed 15 points and seven rebounds in 17 minutes during a victory over Toronto.

Trading Wiseman For Immediate Help Would Be Wise

December 19th, 2022 at 8:32pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Stephen Curry‘s shoulder injury should motivate the Warriors’ front office to make a deal, John Hollinger of The Athletic argues. They have a valuable trade asset in 2020 No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman, who isn’t helping them this season. If they can remove his $12MM salary for next season for a veteran with an expiring contract, they can improve their prospects for this season and get substantial savings from their luxury tax bill for 2023/24, Hollinger observes.
Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins remains sidelined due to a groin injury. He’s listed as out for Golden State’s road game against the Knicks on Tuesday, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. Wiggins hasn’t played since Dec. 3.

Other Players Need To Step Up With Stephen Curry Injured

December 17th, 2022 at 8:40pm CST by Arthur Hill

Andre Snellings of ESPN looks at which Warriors might increase their production while Stephen Curry is sidelined with a shoulder injury.

Warriors Notes: Curry Injury, Wiggins, Wiseman

December 17th, 2022 at 5:14pm CST by Arthur Hill

A left shoulder subluxation will sideline Warriors guard Stephen Curry for multiple weeks, but he’s relieved that it won’t require surgery, writes Kevin Cooney of The Associated Press. Curry, who suffered the injury on a collision Wednesday night, met with reporters before Friday’s game at Philadelphia.

“Knowing that it wasn’t going to need surgery or anything like that was great news,” he said. “Now, you just have to trust the process — no pun intended from where we are. We’re just trying to figure out how to get pain-free quickly, get your strength back and then work your way back into it appropriately.”

Curry underwent an MRI on Thursday that revealed the damage. The Warriors haven’t issued a timeline on a possible return, but the general feeling is that he might miss three to four weeks, which provides another obstacle as the defending champions try to climb above .500.

“It was what we were looking for and it really is the best-case scenario,” coach Steve Kerr said of the MRI results. “So now, we try to tread water and try to keep it together until he gets back.”

There’s more on the Warriors:

Pain control and resting the soft tissue around Curry’s shoulder will be the focus of the first stage of his recovery, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Nirav Pandya told C.J. Holmes of The San Francisco Chronicle. Curry’s pain levels will also determine if surgery might become necessary during the offseason or later in his career. “It’s hard to say just because this is the first time I’ve done it,” Curry responded when asked how much time he expects to miss. “A couple of guys I think had it, more severe cases, other timelines. You kind of do your guesswork. I’ve tried to stay away from it, even me mentally, trying to predict how long it’s going to be just because it’ll let me know.”
Andrew Wiggins will miss at least one more game with right adductor tightness, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. There had been hope that Wiggins might return Sunday at Toronto, but the team confirmed he’ll sit out his seventh straight game.
Kerr stated that center James Wiseman will remain with the Warriors through their current road trip, which wraps up Wednesday (video link from Slater). Wiseman played 11 minutes Friday night, his highest total in more than a month. “He’s gotten a lot better,” Kerr said. “He’s really picked up a lot over the last few weeks with all the practicing (with the G League affiliate) in Santa Cruz, and the game action, the reps.”