Let’s see how the Dubs stack up against the rest of the conference.
When I last did a check-in on the NBA’s Western Conference standings, the Golden State Warriors were in second place and looking like a legitimate contender, despite having lost two in a row. Since then, they’ve gone just 3-9, meaning they’ve now lost 11 of their last 14 games after starting the season with 12 wins in their first 15.
Not great!
But perhaps that means taking a look at where the Warriors sit in the conference standings is more important now than ever. So let’s once again dive into the wild, wild West, to see where the Warriors are, how they’ve done against their competition, and what lies ahead.
The standings and stats are prior to Thursday’s slate of games, and the net ratings are all adjusted for garbage time, courtesy of Cleaning The Glass. I’ll be back next month with another update.
The playoff teams
1. Oklahoma City Thunder — 23-5 record, +11.9 net rating (2nd in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Thunder: 1-1
Games remaining vs. Thunder: 1
Just like last year, the games between the Dubs and the Thunder have been electric, and you’d be excused for hoping that the two teams — led by superstar point guards Steph Curry and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander — match up in the playoffs. But the Thunder are, right now, in a class of their own in the Western Conference, especially since their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup championship game doesn’t count in the standingfs.
2. Houston Rockets — 20-9 record, +7.4 net rating (7th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Rockets: 2-1
Games remaining vs. Rockets: 2
The Warriors and Rockets have the ultra-rare five games against each other this year, thanks to meeting in the quarterfinals of the NBA Cup, which did count in the standings. All three games have been thrilling, and it’s clear that the youthful Rockets have finally and fully emerged as one of the top teams in the conference.
3. Memphis Grizzlies — 20-10 record, +10.2 net rating (4th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Grizzlies: 1-1
Games remaining vs. Grizzlies: 2
It sure doesn’t feel like the Warriors are even with Memphis this year, since their win was more than offset by their 51-point loss last week in one of the ugliest performances you’ll (hopefully) ever see.
4. Dallas Mavericks — 19-11 record, +7.5 net rating (6th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Mavs: 1-1
Games remaining vs. Mavs: 2
Klay Thompson’s new team — and the defending Western Conference champs — took a while to find their rhythm this year, but they’re on fire now. The Mavericks have won 14 of their last 18 games, though with Luka Dončić suffering a fairly severe injury on Christmas, Dallas could go tumbling down the standings.
5. Denver Nuggets — 16-12 record, +3.3 net rating (9th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Nuggets: 0-1
Games remaining vs. Nuggets: 2
The Nuggets are slowly, surely, starting to climb their way up the standings. After winning the 2023 championship, they haven’t seemed particularly invested in regular season success, but they remain clear contenders when the games actually matter.
6. Los Angeles Lakers — 17-13 record, -1.7 net rating (20th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Lakers: 0-1
Games remaining vs. Lakers: 3
The Lakers beat the Warriors in a thrilling Christmas night affair, and they remain one of the league’s oddest teams. On the one hand, the Lakers are currently holding onto one of the playoff spots in the West; on the other hand, no team with a worse net rating than Los Angeles is within three games of .500. They started the season by winning 10 of their first 14 games, and they’ve won five of their last seven; in between, they lost seven out of nine. They’re an odd team.
The play-in teams
7. LA Clippers — 17-13 record, +1.7 net rating (12th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Clippers: 0-2
Games remaining vs. Clippers: 2
LA is just slowly plodding along, holding the same record as their cross-town rivals (though losing out in the standings), and comfortably treading water while they hope for an eventual Kawhi Leonard return. They’ve had the Dubs’ number this year, though.
8. Phoenix Suns — 15-14 record, -1.4 net rating (16th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Suns: 0-1
Games remaining vs. Suns: 3
We’ve known ever since the Suns acquired their star-studded team that they would go as far as their health would take them, and this year has been the clearest case of that. Devin Booker has missed three games, Jusuf Nurkić has missed seven, and both Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal have missed 10. It’s Warriors legend KD who has been, in particular, the ever-important cog in Phoenix’s wheel: with a 14-5 record, they’re clear contenders when he plays; and with a 1-9 record, they’re one of the worst teams in the NBA when he doesn’t suit up.
9. Minnesota Timberwolves — 15-14 record, +2.3 net rating (11th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Wolves: 2-1
Games remaining vs. Wolves: 1
The Dubs have played the Timberwolves well this year, and Minnesota has struggled to find their 2023-24 magic after swapping Karl-Anthony Towns for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo. They’re still ultra talented though, with Anthony Edwards looking less like a star and more like a superstar every day.
10. Golden State Warriors — 15-14 record, +1.1 net rating (14th in the NBA)
Games behind the playoff teams: 1.5
The Dubs are in somewhat of a free fall, and their inability to close out games has been part of it. During their current skid, in which they’ve lost 11 of their last 14, they’ve had a one-point loss, a two-point loss, a pair of four-point losses, a six-point loss, and a pair of eight-point losses.
The lottery teams
11. San Antonio Spurs — 15-15 record, -1.7 net rating (19th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Spurs: 0-1
Games remaining vs. Spurs: 2
The Spurs are coming. They may not make the playoffs this year (though they might!), but it’s only a matter of time before the Victor Wembanyama-led squad is a staple atop the standings. For now, they stand as one talented-but-flawed team that should have all 10 teams currently in postseason standing looking over their shoulder.
12. Sacramento Kings — 13-17 record, +1.1 net rating (13th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Kings: Haven’t yet played
Games remaining vs. Kings: 4
What a disappointing year it’s been for Mike Brown’s team … one so disappointing that rumors are now swirling about how they might not be able to re-sign De’Aaron Fox. The Warriors have yet to face their new rivals, and will meet them for the first of four times on January 5.
13. Portland Trail Blazers — 9-20 record, -10.7 net rating (28th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Blazers: 1-0
Games remaining vs. Blazers: 2
The Dubs haven’t faced the Blazers since winning 140-104 in Portland on Opening Night. Needless to say, Golden State looked like a better team then! The Blazers have a better record than many would have expected at this point in the season, but the net rating paints an uglier picture … needless to say, Portland isn’t in the running for the postseason.
14. Utah Jazz — 7-21 record, -8.6 net rating (27th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Jazz: 1-0
Games remaining vs. Jazz: 2
And the Dubs haven’t faced the Jazz since winning 127-86 in Utah in their second game of the season when, again, they looked like a better team than they do now! The Jazz, on the other hand, have looked like the same sad team all year long.
15. New Orleans Pelicans — 5-25 record, -12.7 net rating (29th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Pelicans: 3-0
Games remaining vs. Pelicans: 1
The Pelicans are like the Suns Lite. They’ll go as far as their health can take them … except the ceiling is not quite as high as Phoenix’s, and the injury concerns are, somehow, much worse. Just 30 games into the year, the Pels have already had 24 absences by Zion Williamson, 18 by Herbert Jones, 17 by Dejounte Murray, 13 each by CJ McCollum and Trey Murphy III, and 12 by Brandon Ingram, to make no mention of their role players. Only four players — rookie Yves Missi, two-way contract Brandon Boston Jr., journeyman Javonte Green, and the still-young-and-inexperienced Jeremiah Robinson-Earl have played more than 20 games this year.
And there are the standings after the slate of Christmas games. Hopefully they look better next month.