The Weekly Dish

Some good, some bad, but the Warriors' performance in the first two weeks of the season indicates they're headed in the right direction.

For the week of Monday, Nov. 7 – Sunday, Nov. 13

This past week offered a taste of both the good and the bad of the Warriors’ season thus far. At times, like in their road victory over Portland, they’ve looked thoroughly dominant, exhibiting the fluidity and potency (season-high 36 assists) of a veteran-laden squad primed for a championship run. At other moments, as in their defeat at the hands of the Lakers, they’ve appeared slightly discombobulated adjusting to a new system replete with new players.

"We’ve been totally up and down," said Steve Kerr following that loss in L.A. "It seems like what we’re doing right now is we are going to win or lose based on our emotion and our energy and if shots go in; and that’s not a good recipe in this league, you need to win with execution, defense and toughness. So on nights you don’t have the other stuff you can still stay in a game and win a game.”

You have to walk before you learn how to run, and although the Warriors’ have Usain Bolt-like potential, they’re still developing the proper habits - the execution, defense and toughness - that will aid in translating that potential into a sustained, tangible advantage over the competition. That will come with time, and given the fact that this group has only been together for less than two months, whatever relative shortcomings they’ve exhibited thus far should be taken with several grains of salt. It only takes a brief look back at recent Warriors’ history to reinforce the idea that, despite the early inconsistency, Golden State remains in good position.

Almost exactly two years ago, in Steve Kerr’s first season as head coach of the Warriors, they began the 2014-15 campaign by winning five of their first seven games, with their lone defeats coming in the form of a home loss to San Antonio, and a road defeat on the second night of a back-to-back. Fast forward to today, and if the Warriors prove victorious over New Orleans later this evening, they’ll possess a 5-2 record, with their two losses coming in the exact same scenario as in '14-'15. In case anyone needs a reminder, Golden State ended up winning the Championship that season, and while history isn't certain to repeat itself, there are some commonalities between the two situations. Just as the Warriors were in the first year of learning a new system when Kerr was brought on board, Golden State is once again in a position where numerous coaches and players alike have been forced to adapt to new plays, rotations and teammate tendencies on the fly. No matter how talented a team may be, when faced with that kind of learning curve, it’s going to take some time to reach the tipping point. Stephen Curry insists that's a journey made easier by remaining levelheaded:

"You got to be able to not get too high and not get to low and understand where we want to be come April, May and June."

We don’t know when Golden State will reach that tipping point, but their performance in the first two weeks of the season indicates they are headed in the right direction.

On a team stuffed with superstars, it’s easy to overlook Andre Iguodala’s contributions on a nightly basis, but don’t be mistaken, the former Finals MVP remains an integral part of what the Warriors do on both ends of the floor. But perhaps nowhere is Iguodala more valuable than on the defensive end, where his length and relentless tenacity - he ranks second on the team with .046 defensive win shares - provide the Dubs with a defensive presence capable of disrupting the opponent on both the perimeter and interior alike. While he isn’t asked to be a scorer for Golden State, the Warriors outscore the opposition more often than not when Iguodala is on the floor, as indicated by his team-leading plus-minus (+43) on the season. In fact, Iguodala’s plus-51 last week was the best of any player in the NBA. He’s an indispensable part of Golden State’s rotation, and a luxury that any of the other 29 teams in the league would love to have.

The week ahead offers the Warriors a chance to take advantage of some home cooking ahead of their first long road trip of the season. Golden State will play four games this week, including three matchups at Oracle Arena. The Dubs will host the Pelicans and Mavericks on Monday and Wednesday, respectively, meaning that, according to the current standings, the Warriors will face the two worst teams in the Western Conference in consecutive games. After that, the Dubs head to Denver for their lone road game of the week, a matchup with the always-troublesome Nuggets on Thursday night. Golden State will then round out the week with a home game against the visiting Phoenix Suns on Sunday, after which the Warriors will embark on a four-game Eastern Conference road trip.