What has happened to our Dubs in the fourth quarter?
The 2024-25 Golden State Warriors have been anything but the clutch team fans grew accustomed to during the dynasty era. At 1-20 when trailing after three quarters, they’re statistically among the least likely teams in the league to stage a comeback this season. It’s a head-scratching and painful aberration for a franchise that once thrived under pressure, transforming late-game deficits into unforgettable moments of brilliance.
Compare this to the dynasty days, when Warriors fans confidently believed that no lead was safe against Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. Back then, trailing after three quarters felt more like a narrative setup than a death sentence. The 73-win 2015-2016 season saw the Warriors go 10-7 in games where they trailed entering the fourth quarter, a testament to their ability to flip the switch and crush opponents’ hopes. The momentum shifts were electric, and Golden State became synonymous with late-game heroics.
Steph couldn’t believe the Warriors’ record this season when trailing after three quarters
— Warriors on NBC Sports Bay Area (@nbcswarriors.bsky.social) 2025-01-26T05:20:07.284Z
But this season? Those heroics have been hard to come by. A combination of aging stars, injuries, and a lack of depth has left the Warriors struggling to find that same clutch gene. Last year the team was 3-24 when trailing after three quarters. They were 7-19 when they won their most recent championship in 2022.
Once a squad that bent the game to their will, they now resemble teams from a not-so-distant past. You know, the ones that long-suffering fans will reluctantly recall. For those who endured the lean years pre-2013, this 1-20 record has a familiar sting. Back then, it was an unspoken rule: if the Warriors were down late, you might as well start your postgame lament early. The lack of reliable playmakers, erratic coaching, and an overwhelming sense of inevitability hung over those teams. Those Warriors didn’t just lose: they collapsed.
Is this season’s squad an echo of those mediocre days? Not quite. The Warriors of 2024-25 are still led by some of the greatest players in NBA history in Steph and Dray. But watching them falter late in games has stirred feelings of deja vu of Warriors teams of mediocre pasts. The long, deflating stretches where the offense grinds to a halt and defensive lapses multiply harken back to an era when just making the playoffs felt like a fantasy.
For now, the Warriors’ clutch struggles remain a bitter reality. Fans who remember the heartbreak of those pre-dynasty days may find this season eerily familiar, even if it’s wrapped in the dissonance of seeing legends on the court. Perhaps the magic of old can be rekindled, but for now, Warriors faithful are left with a painful reminder that no team is immune to struggle.