5 Nationally Televised Games for Golden State Warriors to Prove They're Legit

It's not just Golden State Warriors fans that know their team can be a force this season.

The NBA is aware, too.

With 16 nationally televised games this season, basketball fans across the world will easily get the chance to see how much the Warriors have improved with their revamped roster.

The Warriors can distance themselves from the small-ball reputation. They can establish themselves as a well-rounded force in the NBA.

After these five games, the Warriors will get a chance to prove they are a legitimate playoff contender while Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes become names even your mom will recognize.

Saturday, November 3rd @ L.A. Clippers (NBATV)

What better time to prove you're a legit team than in your first nationally televised game of the season.

On paper, the Warriors match up well against the Los Angeles Clippers. Outside of Chris Paul, one could argue that the Warriors have the advantage or are equal in every position in the starting fives.

Their bench is comparable, too.

Not bad considering the Clippers were the winners of a playoff series last year—a feat the Warriors have achieved only once in the last 21 years.

This will be a great early test for the Warriors. The Warriors split the season series last season with an inferior roster. This is the first chance the world will get to see how much improvement their new roster has accomplished.

A win here would make a statement that the Warriors are playoff bound.

Thursday, November 29th vs. Denver Nuggets (TNT)

This will be the third matchup between the Denver Nuggets and the Warriors in the month of November in what could be a rubber match.

The Nuggets have one of the deepest teams in the NBA and are expected to be among the top five teams in the Western Conference.

While the Warriors are expected to "make the leap" into the playoffs, the Nuggets are expecting to "make the leap" deep into the playoffs.

If healthy, the Warriors could be every bit as good as the Nuggets this season, and a great way to prove that is to win this game against the Nuggets in front of the home crowd and on television in front of the entire world.

A win here may be the one to give the Warriors the series win for the month and would jump-start their playoff bandwagon.

Friday, December 14th @ Orlando Magic (ESPN)

Of course, this is assuming ESPN doesn't pull the plug on any Orlando Magic games this season.

With no Dwight Howard, no Ryan Anderson and no lottery pick, the Magic are going to be no fun to watch this year.

That's good news for Warriors fans, and they had better hope that this is a boring game.

For years, the Warriors have always played down to their competition. This is a great chance for the Warriors to prove that they are no longer that team.

A blowout win here would go a long way to prove that the Warriors will not be taking any team lightly.

Wednesday, January 16th vs. Miami Heat (ESPN)

As far as the Warriors proving that they're legit, a home game against the defending champion Miami Heat on national television is certainly a way to do just that.

The Warriors actually won in their only matchup against the Heat last season.

They did it by scoring 111 points against one of the best defensive teams in the NBA. Don't expect a win in that manner to happen again, but this will be a great test to see how far the Warriors have come defensively.

LeBron James and Dwayne Wade present matchup nightmares. If Mark Jackson can come up with a scheme to beat the Heat in a defensive battle, the Warriors are sure to be a topic of conversion amongst all the talking heads the following day.

Thursday, January 31st vs. Dallas Mavericks (TNT)

The Dallas Mavericks sure look a lot different from the championship team of two years ago. That doesn't mean that their playoff aspirations will be any different this year.

With Dirk Nowitzki, Elton Brand, Shawn Marion and Chris Kaman, the Mavericks would be able to out-muscle last year's Warriors team, no problem.

This is the chance to prove things are different.

With Andrew Bogut in the middle, the Warriors can show they will be able to pass tough physical tests like this one.

The Mavericks are one of many teams in the Western Conference that are competing for one of the final spots in the playoffs. A win this deep in the season would support the Warriors as legitimate playoff contenders.