As hopeful as things seemed not long ago, the Golden State Warriors prospects now seem just as dire. Some fans and fan sites are in panic mode, calling for blood or at least a major trade. Young Jonathan Kuminga seemed like he was goaded into some unfortunate comments criticizing Coach Kerr, then changed his tune a day later in public. Meanwhile the roster changes again as Chris Paul has a serious injury and will be out for an undetermined time--but probably a long time (4-6 weeks or maybe much longer), while Draymond Green is set to return to the team and begin playing possibly in a week.
The catalyst for all this angst was a three game losing streak at home, the climax being a last milisecond loss to Denver, after being ahead by 18 points with less than a quarter to go. It was yet another emotionally devastating loss, the kind that has everyone losing its sense of the team, if not demonstrably freaking out. Among the scenarios in this game--in which the Warriors played very well for three quarters--was Coach Kerr's decision not to re-insert Kuminga in the 4th quarter lineup, the cause of Kuminga's outburst. Kerr has yet to say this was a coaching mistake (as he did when he failed to keep a hot Moses Moody in for crunch time, and watched the team lose that one as well.) But Steph Curry came right out and said it had been a mistake.
Yet the Warriors had to play the next night after the Denver loss, and barely beat the team currently holding the record for consecutive losses. But drained and tired, they did win, and that meant something.
Steph Curry's analysis after the Denver game was the most trenchant. When asked what had gone wrong to lead to so many disappointing losses, he said there were different factors in each game but added that it's not a good position to be in when you have to explain your losses--"but that's who we are right now."
He said that right now the Warriors don't know who they are, but the Denver Nuggets do. They know what they will do to finish games, but Golden State--with its fluctuating lineups--doesn't. "We haven't established an identity," he concluded, "but there's still belief that we can."
The Warriors have lost a bunch of close games, and won a few. They can be competitive, but according to Curry what is missing is this sense of identity, of knowing who they are. They now face the adjustment to Draymond's return, not knowing how he will be different because of his suspension. A lot of people are expecting a big trade, but that won't help the immediate identity problem, just postpone it. As other teams loaded with high-priced stars have already discovered, that's no guarantee to establishing a team, an identity, or a winning culture.
Their short-term hope is that Draymond can step back in and fill the gap that Chris Paul left, though Paul's presence in the locker room will still be important, especially to the younger players he's brought along. Curry is not expressing panic--he's seen turmoil before over the years, though fans and commentators tend to forget the controversies of the past and how important they seemed at the time. The Warriors' adventure continues.
There is of course another San Francisco team that knows who they are, and if they can escape key injuries Sunday (as the Ravens did), the 49ers will soon embark on their postseason journey to the Super Bowl, where a rematch with the Ravens seems likely if not inevitable.
Meanwhile the Pittsburgh Steelers await Sunday outcomes that will tell them if they're going into the playoffs, though without T.J. Watt their slim chances to advance very far seem further dimmed. It would be fascinating however to see if the offensive transformation under 3rd string quarterback Mason Rudolph is to continue, or the keys given back to Kenny Pickett. In the unlikely event they make the playoffs [update: they did], my guess is Tomlin will stay with Rudolph, but if they don't make the playoffs, next season is anybody's guess. A new offensive coordinator will have a lot to say. In any case the Steelers have a winning season, the 17th straight non-losing season for Coach Tomlin, and the 20th straight for the Steelers overall. A generation of winning football--something to savor.
