After the Warriors' win over Phoenix on Monday, their fifth straight (something they never managed last season), Stephen Curry was asked what about this year's squad feels different from the one that finished with 37 wins a year ago. "I mean, Yax," Curry laughed, stating the obvious when it comes to the historic start of Warriors' rookie Yaxel Lendeborg. "BP [Brandin Podziemski] taking another step forward.
B-Will [Brandon Williams] has been great for us off the bench, giving us something we haven't had in a while. We've had some individual production that's been pretty cool, some standout guys who've made their presence felt night after night. "But I think collectively," Curry continued, "we're probably a little bit more prepared on the details of what we're trying to do, and not just taking for granted that you can just play like the Warriors of old and expect good things to happen." Curry didn't elaborate on these "details" on which the Warriors are more focused this season, but it looks about the same on the statistical surface.
They're playing at the same pace. Making the same amount of 3s. They're still a high-turnover offense.
They remain small, collectively old and not particularly athletic. They own a nearly identical 114-ish defensive rating, which at the moment has them ranked as a bottom-10 unit. Their spot-up, pick-and-roll, transition and isolation frequencies are all pretty much the same, per Synergy.
Which is to say, the Warriors are, in fact, playing like the Warriors. They look so good, that they've jumped 15 spots this week into the top 10 of our weekly NBA Power Rankings. Let's break down three reasons why.
Anyone who says they can see slippage in Curry's game must be looking through one hell of a high-powered microscope. He's scoring more than a point a minute (30 PPG in 28.8 MPG). The only other player doing that, with at least 100 minutes played, is Luka Dončić.
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