NBA Rumors: Warriors Seen as 4th-Best Team in West Based on Rival's Data Model

Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors may not have made it past the play-in round last season, but one rival NBA team believes that is set to change in 2025.

After the Warriors added De'Anthony Melton, Buddy Hield and Kyle Anderson this offseason, one rival team's model projected the team finishing fourth in the 2024-25 Western Conference, The Athletic's Anthony Slater reported.

"The Warriors believe they improved this summer, team sources emphasized, basing that partially on internal number models that gave a positive-value thumbs-up to the additions of Melton, Anderson and Hield," Slater wrote. "A few analytics-driven employees from around the league agree."

The Warriors finished the 2023-24 campaign with 46 wins, ranking 10th in the conference and earning a bid in the play-in round before the team's season was ended by the Sacramento Kings.

That win total put the Warriors just five victories ahead of Houston Rockets and missing out on the play-in round altogether. It also placed the Warriors just five wins behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the fourth spot in the conference.

Some rival teams apparently believe the Warriors can find those additional five wins, despite the offseason losses of Klay Thompson and Chris Paul, now that their reserves have been bolstered by the additions of Melton, Hield and Anderson.

Some competitors at the top of the 2023-24 Western Conference could conceivably take a step back down the standings next season, such as the Denver Nuggets facing the loss of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and the Los Angeles Clippers dealing with the exit of Paul George.

But with other Western rivals like the Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks arguably having improved this offseason, the Warriors are sure to face steep competition as the team looks to return to the top of the conference standings behind Curry next spring.