Things have not been easy for the Golden State Warriors this season. Life in the NBA’s Western Conference is never easy, but everything that could go wrong has for the Warriors. The season had a promising start, but it has since faded into a hellscape for the team and their fans. It has quickly turned into a tank, hoping for the best draft pick possible to rebound next season and go on one last run for the Steph Curry era.
It’s been a bad season. The basketball gods have not voted in the Warriors’ favor. On January 19th, they lost Jimmy Butler to a torn ACL in a game against his former team, the Miami Heat. That put a big damper on the season by itself. Butler was the perfect running partner for Curry. The two played perfectly off of each other. When Butler isn’t in the lineup, things get shaky. It makes the Warriors a one-dimensional team. All the opponent has to focus on is Curry. He’s incredible, but he can’t do it all by himself.
11 days later, Curry came down with an injury of his own. He was experiencing patella-femoral pain and bone bruising in his knee. If last year’s NBA Playoffs taught us anything, it was that leg injuries are nothing to play with. Multiple guys suffered intense leg injuries after trying to play on a bad knee or ankle. At his age, it isn’t worth playing around with Curry’s legs. Sitting him has been the right call. If he goes down with a tear or rupture, the Warriors go up in flames. His brother, Seth Curry, has also dealt with injuries all year.
Fast forward to March, and the Warriors are still without their two best players. On March 23rd, Moses Moody suffered a non-contact torn patellar tendon after attempting a fastbreak dunk. It was one of the most brutal knee injuries in some time. The basketball gods have not been friendly to Golden State’s knees over the past calendar year. Last year, DeAnthony Melton suffered a torn ACL. It has been disheartening, to say the least.
At the time of the Butler injury, the Warriors were 24-19 and enjoying a four-game win streak. When Curry went down, they were 27-23. Since then, they have only won eight games. Turns out, not having your two best players can ruin a season. Especially when the front office has failed to build around them. They were finally able to get rid of Jonathan Kuminga’s bad attitude in a trade for Kristaps Porzingis, but it was too little too late. The season is over before April strikes.
When Butler got hurt, he was averaging 20 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game at 36 years old. At the time of Curry’s injury, he was averaging 27 points and 4.8 assists per game at 38 years old. They might be heading towards the end of their playing days, but the duo still has gas in the tank. Batman and Robin had big plans for the 2026 season, but unfortunately, the basketball gods had other plans.
At this point, the Warriors are better off shutting down Curry and aiming for the highest draft pick possible. This regime has already butchered two lottery picks on Kuminga and James Wiseman, but it’s time to take another stab at it. The 2027 NBA Draft class is stout. A top pick could be a difference maker and a stone cast towards the future in The Bay. Imagine what a player like AJ Dybantsa could do for their future. He could help them make a run next year and lead them into the next 15 years.
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