The Weekly Dish

It’s official. No team in NBA history has started a season better than the Warriors.

For the week of Monday, Nov. 23 – Sunday, Nov. 29

Well, it’s official. No team in NBA history has started a season better than the Warriors, who now sit at 15-0 after four more victories last week. Winning 15 games in a row is a great accomplishment in itself, but to do so coming off the heels of the shortest summer in franchise history just goes to show how dominant the Warriors have been over the past 13 months. Since the start of last season, the Warriors have compiled a record of 82-15 (.845) in regular season games and 98-20 (.831) including the playoffs. They’re now the first team in a decade to post win streaks of at least 15 games in consecutive seasons, and the one they’re currently on has reinforced the understanding that this team is capable of winning games in a seemingly endless variety of ways.

They’ve blown out a team by 50, and completed a 23-point comeback victory over their division rivals. They’ve seen the reigning MVP go off for 20 or more points in a single quarter four times already this season, and seen their power forward lead the team in assists in more than half of their games. They’ve won eight games at home and seven on the road. They’ve shot 50 percent or better from the field six times, while allowing their opposition to do so only once. They’ve compiled at least 26 assists in all but two contests, and won five games despite committing 20 or more turnovers. Quite simply, even when they haven’t been at their best, the Dubs have found countless ways to get the job done. And when they’re firing on all cylinders? Good luck. No team has been able to solve the quandary they pose as of yet, and with a victory tomorrow night, they’d sit alone atop the best start to a season in NBA history. The team certainly wants the record, but only while keeping their larger goals in mind. As great as the start has been, it’s the finish the players and coaches are focused on, and that’s still a long way away. That said, it would be a disservice to the team, and the sport for that matter, if we didn’t acknowledge the specialness of their performance to date. They’re seemingly rewriting the NBA record books on a nightly basis, and it will continue to be a thrill to watch them attempt to do so over the course of the full season.

As has been the case already once this season, if you perform well enough to earn Western Conference Player of the Week honors, you’re probably getting acknowledged in this space as well. Curry posted averages of 30.8 points, 6.0 assists and 5.5 rebounds in 35.0 minutes in the four victories last week, and the most impressive aspect of those numbers might be that they don’t actually seem all that eye-opening, given his performance on the season to date. He’s been so good and so consistent that we keep getting lulled back into the daydream–like haze where what he’s doing out on the court seems within the realm of normalcy, when the truth is that it’s anything but. His averages from last week are right in line with his 32.7/5.7/5.2 per game averages on the season, so while those numbers may now seem normal for him, a little context serves to magnify his accomplishments. For instance, of the top 30 scorers in the NBA, only three players have a better field goal percentage than Curry (51.4%), and they’re all at least five inches taller, 60 pounds heavier and taking fewer shots per game than the league’s reigning MVP. The combination of his unique ability to stretch a defense with his prolific shooting and his phenomenal handle that permits him to get to any spot on the floor makes Curry unlike any other player in the game today, and perhaps, in the history of the sport. The Warriors’ winning streak is bound to end sometime, but while Curry’s playing like this, it definitely increases the likelihood that it will persist at least a little bit longer.

While there are no sure things in the NBA, one would think that the week ahead provides a good opportunity for the Warriors to add to their historic season-opening win streak. First up is a home matchup with the Lakers tomorrow night in which the Warriors will look to become the first team in NBA history to start a season 16-0. Only Los Angeles (2-11) stands in their way, and it will likely take the Lakers’ best performance of the season in order to bring an end to the Dubs’ pursuit of history, and even that might not be enough. After tomorrow’s game, the Warriors’ week rounds out with another back-to-back sequence, their fifth back-to-back set already this season. The Warriors head to Phoenix for a matchup with the Suns on Friday before returning home to Oracle Arena for a rematch against the Kings on Saturday night. Although their records might not leap off the page, each of the Warriors’ opponents this week reside in the Pacific Division, so expect hard-fought games on both sides. As has been the case all season long, history is on the line this week for the Warriors. If they play like they have been, there’s no reason to think they can’t keep this run going.

Till next week.

The Dish has been served.