Charlie Walter, the host of the daily Locked On Warriors podcast, with your daily Locked On Warriors newsletter. Each day we bring you the biggest stories about the Warriors and the NBA, including the hottest links to other stories you need to read. Plus, Josh Lloyd delivers daily fantasy notes to crush your league.
Who Should Golden State Warriors Look To Acquire In Trade To Bolster NBA Title Chances
The Golden State Warriors are navigating a challenging phase, with a five-game losing streak casting a shadow over their season. As they prepare to face the Houston Rockets, the absence of key players like Steph Curry and Draymond Green raises questions about the team’s depth and resilience. The Warriors’ recent performances have been a rollercoaster, showing promise in stretches but ultimately faltering due to turnovers and defensive lapses.
The team’s struggles highlight a pressing need for a reliable second scorer to support Curry. While players like Jonathan Kuminga have shown potential, the Warriors are exploring options to bolster their roster. The debate centers around whether to pursue a blockbuster trade or make smaller adjustments. Names like Kyle Kuzma and Zach Lavine have surfaced, but the financial and strategic implications of such moves are complex.
Steve Kerr, the Warriors’ head coach, faces scrutiny from fans, but his track record as a four-time NBA champion speaks volumes. The question remains: who could step in and do a better job with the current roster? The Warriors’ identity crisis is evident, with turnovers and fouls reminiscent of last season’s struggles. The team must rediscover its defensive tenacity and offensive cohesion to turn the tide.
As the Warriors approach a critical stretch of games, including matchups against the Timberwolves, Grizzlies, and Lakers, their performance will determine their trajectory. The team must execute their game plan, minimize turnovers, and capitalize on opportunities to stay competitive in the Western Conference.
The Warriors’ journey is a testament to the highs and lows of an NBA season. While the current situation is challenging, the potential for a turnaround exists if the team can harness its strengths and address its weaknesses. The upcoming games will be a litmus test for the Warriors, revealing whether they can reclaim their status as championship contenders and whether they even attempt a blockbuster trade mid-season.
Dec 1, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick calls a play against the Utah Jazz during the first half at the Delta Center. | Christopher Creveling/Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images
If JJ Redick had approached the season signalling a measure of outward self-awareness that he, a former player with no head coaching experience and cohost of a podcast with LeBron James, was now head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, things might be different. If Redick had acknowledged that very obvious, and unique to our contemporary basketball moment of athlete-driven media elephant in the room, things might be different. If Redick had at any point, when asked about his new role in scrums wherein he knows the clips and audio of his answers will be immediately and robustly aggregated, balanced out his self-aggrandizing basketball sicko-hood, or answers where he likened head coaching to nothing short of personal destiny, with something like, It’s a learning curve, really anything a hair more measured, things might be different.
Things would not look different. The Lakers made no real structural changes to their roster in the offseason, so the team playing bad basketball now is the same team that was playing bad basketball last season under Darvin Ham (Redick is one game off the 13-9 pace set by Ham last season), but things might be interpreted, or reasoned with, differently. That kind of grace, for a struggling franchise with major conflicting timelines and high-stakes notions like legacy on the line, goes a long way.
There is such a fine line in coaching between collaborative and domineering, confident and arrogant, and many first-time head NBA coaches have learned the hard way what it is to lose a team, and lose them quickly. Nate Bjorkgren went into the Pacers organization not just hot but by many accounts scorching, and was expeditiously fired at the end of his lone year in Indiana. Jason Kidd may have traded in his string of short-lived head coaching appointments (Nets, Bucks — and surprise! — Lakers) for his current and seemingly steady job with the Mavs, but there is no doubt a type afforded the leniency of multiple failures in the NBA, and it tends to be white, male and abidingly faultless.
To Redick’s credit, he has vocally shouldered the blame of the Lakers recent, bad losses. When the team fell to the Timberwolves 109-80 to start the month, Redick noted their lacklustre effort was “looking more and more like it’s not an aberration”, correcting himself from a late-November blown effort against the Nuggets he said was. This week’s impressive loss to the Heat resulted in a two minute explanation from Redick that skimmed the existential and was anchored in the heavy weight of realization.
What’s difficult from here — beyond how the Lakers improve when their offensive energy is sporadic at best and their approach to defence has been to literally stand back and watch — is how to move forward into the long season still ahead, with the base level of competency and pride necessary for a cohesive team to function.
Katie Heindl is a credentialed NBA and WNBA writer, her bylines have appeared with The New York Times Magazine, SLAM, The Athletic, Yahoo Sports, Dime, Rolling Stone, among others. She writes the bestselling Substack, Basketball Feelings and is working on a book of the same name.
Home and Away
Analysis The film breakdown of the Warriors’ 99-93 win over the Rockets highlights Jonathan Kuminga and Andrew Wiggins’ strategic plays and defensive prowess. (Golden State of Mind)
Feel Good Steph Curry shares his excitement over Jonathan Kuminga’s performance in the Warriors’ recent win against the Rockets. (Sports Illustrated)
Preview The Timberwolves will take on the Warriors at Chase Center at 10:00 PM ET. Read the preview.(NBA)
Biz The NBA will return to China in 2025; The first time since team executive Daryl Morey’s 2019 tweet signalled support for Hong Kong independence. (ESPN)
Feel Good Four Raptors rookies make history by playing in two games in one day. (SportsNet)
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Fantasy Cheat Sheet
Ayo Dosunmu’s Big Fantasy Basketball Night
Dec 5, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) looks to pass the ball while defended by San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) and forward Harrison Barnes (40) during the first half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter/Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
The Dallas Mavericks dominated the Washington Wizards, with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving leading the charge. Doncic’s 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, alongside Irving’s 25 points, highlighted their commanding performance. Despite a lackluster showing from P.J. Washington, Quentin Grimes and Spencer Dinwiddie delivered solid contributions. The Wizards’ decision to start Marvin Bagley over Jonas Valančiūnas was puzzling, given Bagley’s inconsistent play. Bilal Coulibaly’s struggles continue, and Jordan Poole’s shooting woes persist, though his minutes remain encouraging.
In another matchup, the Cleveland Cavaliers secured a significant win over the Denver Nuggets. Nikola Jokic’s 27 points, 20 rebounds, and 11 assists underscored his dominance, despite heavy minutes. Michael Porter Jr.'s defensive contributions were notable, with four steals and two blocks. On the Cavaliers’ side, Caris LeVert’s 21 points and Donovan Mitchell’s 28 points, six assists, and six triples were key to their victory.
The Oklahoma City Thunder overwhelmed the Toronto Raptors, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the charge with 30 points, five assists, and two steals. Cason Wallace’s defensive prowess was on display, contributing two steals and four blocks. The Raptors struggled without Jakob Poeltl, highlighting their lack of depth at the center position.
Don’t let other episodes pass you by — stay locked in with the latest Locked On Warriors podcasts.
Golden State Warriors Finalizing Deal To Land Dennis Schroder Of Brooklyn Nets
Live reaction to the reports that Dennis Schroder is being traded from the Brooklyn Nets to the Golden State Warriors.
When And How Will The Golden State Warriors Late Game Scoring Struggles Change?
The Golden State Warriors were in a similar position late, failing to score for a long stretch to close the game and giving away a game the Dubs should have won. Where did it go wrong for the Warriors, and how are they going to fix this from continuing to be a theme??
Steph Curry Speaks Out: The Urgency of Tightening the Warriors’ Rotation
With the Golden State Warriors in a slump, Steph Curry made a subtle push for change. Today’s show debates the balance between development and immediate performance. The episode also explores trade rumors and the strategic decisions Coach Steve Kerr faces in optimizing the roster. With a mix of analysis and speculation, this episode offers a comprehensive look at the Warriors’ path forward amidst a competitive Western Conference landscape.
