Warriors Schedule Breakdown and Predictions for Final 6 Weeks of 2014-15 Season
The Golden State Warriors move into the final six weeks of the 2014-15 season with a lot to prove. They want to earn the best record in order to secure home court for the playoffs while staying away from any major injury.
The team is looking more pedestrian these days, as it finished with an 8-3 record in February. The Warriors had to come back from a 26-point deficit to beat the Celtics 106-101 on Sunday, and they finished six road games in nine nights with a heartbreaking 110-108 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Monday.
Golden State has a 4.5-game lead over the Memphis Grizzlies in the Western Conference, but there are still some tough matchups lurking ahead. The team needs to play on the road against the San Antonio Spurs, Memphis Grizzlies, Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Clippers.
At home, Golden State gets the rematch with the Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta Hawks, the Grizzlies, Clippers and Blazers.
Are the Warriors up to the challenge? Here are my predictions for the rest of the way.
March 4-10
1 of 7
This week takes the Warriors back home, where they play three out of four games at Oracle Arena. The biggest game in that span is against the Los Angeles Clippers on March 8.
The Clippers are currently sans Blake Griffin, who is out because of right-elbow surgery due to a staph infection. Center DeAndre Jordan has upped his performance without the Kia spokesman, and the team has gone 7-3 in that span.
Griffin is looking to make his return for this game, as the teams have each won a home game with one more in Los Angeles after this tilt. Fans will get another spectacular Stephen Curry vs. Chris Paul show in order to prove who is the best point guard.
Before the game with the Clippers, the Warriors will face the Milwaukee Bucks and Dallas Mavericks at home. Golden State will go on the road as the second game of a back-to-back to face Phoenix on March 9.
The Warriors should take care of business this week with three wins. The Suns will get the only win, since Golden State will spend so much energy putting away the Clippers the previous day.
The Suns beat the Warriors the last time in Phoenix, but that roster has seen tremendous changes.
March 11-17
2 of 7
The Warriors get arguably their easiest week of the season, as they don’t have to face any team with a winning record. These games should be a walk in the park for the blue and yellow.
The featured matchup of the week is against the Detroit Pistons and the new additions made before the NBA trade deadline. Detroit acquired Reggie Jackson from the Oklahoma City Thunder to run the point and got former Piston Tayshaun Prince from the Boston Celtics.
The Warriors will get their first look at Jackson running his new team, while they try to handle big men Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond. Draymond Green also gets to face the team that will most likely pursue him in free agency this summer.
The remainder of the games against teams waiting for their seasons to end start at the Denver Nuggets on March 13, with home dates against the New York Knicks on March 14 and Los Angeles Lakers on March 16.
The Warriors should boost their confidence by going 4-0 during this week of lesser competition.
March 18-24
3 of 7
After experiencing an easier week, the Warriors get five games in seven days against much-tougher competition—including vs. Atlanta, vs. New Orleans and at Portland.
The marquee matchup is the Hawks on March 18. The Eastern Conference’s best team will try and make it a season sweep of the Warriors.
Head coach Steve Kerr and staff will be studying film from the previous loss in Atlanta in order to find ways to best the solid-shooting team from Georgia. In the 124-116 loss to the Hawks on Feb. 6, the Warriors were limited to 15 attempts from the charity stripe compared to the opponent’s 37.
Golden State should enjoy the hometown environment, where it currently has a 24-2 record.
The Dubs get a day off before back-to-back matchups against the New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazz. Pelicans’ big man Anthony Davis should be back from his right-shoulder injury by the time they get into town.
After a day off, the Warriors have a new set of back-to-backs with one at home against the Washington Wizards and a roadie at the Moda Center in Portland versus the Blazers.
Five games in seven days will exhaust any team, so expect Kerr to rest some of his starters during this swing. Andre Iguodala and Bogut will for sure get rest, but Curry and Klay Thompson could each sneak in a break.
The potential winning streak will mostly likely snap during this rough go. I see the Warriors finishing 3-2 this week with losses at home to New Orleans and on the road at Portland.
March 25-31
4 of 7
After ending the previous week with a tough matchup in Portland, the Warriors continue this week with all road games. They get the opportunity to face difficult competition against Memphis on March 27, Milwaukee on March 28 and the Clippers on March 31.
The Clippers matchup will be the typical rivalry game, but the most anticipated contest will be against the Grizzlies at the FedEx Forum, commonly known as the Grindhouse. The Warriors lost in Memphis 105-98 on Dec. 16, which snapped Golden State’s record 16-game winning streak.
The Warriors were without the services of both Andrew Bogut and David Lee that evening and hope they can return the favor with a win. This game will be huge, with Memphis trying to shrink the Warriors' overall lead.
Golden State will play physical, but foul trouble will doom them in the final seconds.
The team cannot overlook the Bucks on the second night of the back-to-back. Milwaukee has some scorers and is a developing group that just acquired Michael Carter-Williams at the trade deadline to go with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker.
The Warriors will survive the week, but go 1-2 with their only win against the Bucks.
April 1-7
5 of 7
The schedule continues its rough stretch with one home game before the dreaded Texas-New Orleans road trip arrives. The one home game—against Phoenix on April 2—arrives after coming back from that brutal four-game road trip against three playoff teams.
Dallas is the first adversary on the roadie starting April 4, followed by the feared San Antonio Spurs the following evening.
The Spurs will be toughest matchup on this trip, as the Warriors have not won a regular-season game in San Antonio since Feb. 14, 1997. With a playoff spot still on the line, don’t expect head coach Gregg Popovich to hold anything back in this game.
Golden State gets a day off before finishing the season’s road schedule with a game against the New Orleans Pelicans on April 7.
The Warriors will be road weary after this stanza and finish the week with a 2-2 record with wins against Phoenix and Dallas.
April 8-15
6 of 7
Golden State goes home to finish the last week of the season with two difficult matchups and potentially the Western Conference crown on the line.
The first tilt is April 9 against LaMarcus Aldridge and the dangerous Portland Trail Blazers. Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry will have their hands full with guards Damian Lillard and Wesley Matthews.
The Warriors avoid back-to-backs for the remainder of the regular season and get to see Kevin Garnett return with the Minnesota Timberwolves on April 11. The following game versus the Memphis Grizzlies should mean the most to both teams depending on where they sit in the standings.
If either team has not clinched the best record in the West, this game will be intense and possibly a Western Conference Finals preview. The Warriors finally get the Grizzlies on their court, where Golden State has arguably the best fanbase and one of the toughest places to play.
The game will feature a tough paint battle of Bogut and Green vs. Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. If it still matters, the contest will be a great late-season gauge of whether the Warriors are ready for a physical matchup.
The final game of the week and season is against the Denver Nuggets, who just fired their head coach, Brian Shaw.
Look for the Warriors to finish the season strong with a 4-0 record and confidence moving into the playoffs.
The Final Six Weeks
7 of 7
The Warriors come into the final six weeks with the best record in the Western Conference. They survived a harsh six-game road trip and still hold a somewhat comfortable lead over second-place Memphis.
In the next six weeks, based on this breakdown, the Warriors should finish with a 17-7 run. Overall, their final record would end up at 63-19, a franchise record and most likely the top seed in the West.
Questions still need to be answered, like: when will Thompson end his shooting slump? He has been inconsistent since he put up that 37-point quarter in the 126-101 win over the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 23.
Festus Ezeli actually got some quality playing time after being suspended one game, as he scored 14 points, had eight boards and recorded one block in the 110-108 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Monday. The promising thing was he made six out of seven attempts at the line and could spell Bogut in the closing minutes.
Kerr and his staff will have to iron out the problems and continue to find the right rotations for the playoffs. The next challenge is arriving soon, and no Warriors fan wants to see a short postseason.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
