Warriors week 7 review/week 8 preview

After posting a winning record in each of their first six weeks — including going undefeated four times — the Golden State Warriors have finally had a losing week. The Dubs had three games and lost two of them, albeit with a statement win in between the bookending defeats.

It’s another three-game week ahead of them, so the Dubs have a chance to get some of those games back. Let’s look back on what happened last week, and look forward to what will happen this week.

Where they stand

Record: 19-4
Standing: Tied for 1st seed with the Phoenix Suns
Offensive rating: 3rd (113.5)
Defensive rating: 1st (101.1)
Net rating: 1st (+12.4)

Team ratings are garbage-time adjusted, courtesy of Cleaning The Glass.

Weekly recap

Tuesday: Lost to the Phoenix Suns 104-96
Friday: Beat the Phoenix Suns 118-96
Saturday: Lost to the San Antonio Spurs 112-107

Despite Tuesday’s loss, the week started in a totally acceptable and slightly predictable manner. The Dubs kicked things off facing the only other squad with a claim to the “best team in the league” title, who happened to be on a 16-game winning streak. Steph Curry had an off night, Golden State kept things competitive, and they eventually lost.

Then they rematched, at home, this time with Devin Booker missing the entire game. And it was thorough domination.

It was a somewhat predictable script at that point.

Losing to the Spurs, at home, the next night? That’s where things started to get weird.

Performance of the week

Draymond Green vs. the Suns (Game 2): 9 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists, 6 steals, 3 blocks, 4-for-6 shooting, 1-for-1 threes.

The ultimate Draymond game. 9 points. 9 rebounds. 9 assists. 9 stocks. All-world defense, shifting between point guard Chris Paul and center Deandre Ayton. Elite passing. Strong rebounding. Efficient scoring.

Just a superstar performance.

Honorable mention to...

Juan Toscano-Anderson vs. the Suns (Game 2): 17 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 7-for-8 shooting, 1-for-2 threes, 2-for-3 free throws.

And right behind Draymond? Someone doing about the best Draymond impression you will ever see.

Highlight of the week

Speaking of JTA, let’s see what rude and cruel things he did to our old buddy JaVale McGee in that game:

This week’s schedule

Monday: vs. Orlando Magic (5-19), 7:00 p.m. PT
Wednesday: vs. Portland Trail Blazers (11-13), 7:00 p.m. PT
Saturday: @ Philadelphia 76ers (12-11), 5:30 p.m. PT

This schedule certainly looks more favorable than playing the Suns twice, but there are some difficult games there.

Easiest game of the week

Monday against the Magic.

Orlando is rebuilding, and has gone almost all-in on playing youth. Their leader in minutes per game is Cole Anthony, a second-year player. Two of their top five in minutes are rookies Franz Wagner (whom the Warriors passed on to select Jonathan Kuminga) and Jalen Suggs. Rounding out their top 5 in minutes per game are 22-year old Wendell Carter Jr. and 23-year old Mo Bamba.

If the Warriors play with even a modicum of discipline, they should coast to a victory.

Hardest game of the week

Saturday at the Sixers.

The last time Golden State played Philly, the Dubs were at home, facing a Sixers squad that was missing Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris. They managed to fall behind by 19 points in that game, before turning on the jets in a big way to finish the game with a win.

Now they face the Sixers on the road, and Philly will be with Harris and, crucially, Embiid — last year’s MVP runner-up. Philadelphia is sporting a winning record despite Embiid missing 10 games, Harris missing nine, and Danny Green missing seven. They’re well-coached, deep, and talented.

Prediction time!

It shouldn’t be a surprise that the first losing week of the season caught a few people by surprise. In last week’s review/preview, only 5% of fans correctly predicted an upcoming 1-2 week. The majority (52%) thought the Dubs would go 2-1, while 43% expected another sweep.