The Golden State Warriors are not having the start to a championship defense campaign that a team would like. They have started the season out in a 2-6 hole, with the team’s defense looking dysfunctional and chemistry extremely hurt. The fault doesn’t lie with Draymond Green and Jordan Poole after their offseason altercation but it seems to be a general team morale issue.
That was reflected on the court in the Warriors’ close loss to the Orlando Magic. Stephen Curry has been demanding a high level of play from his teammates, but James Wiseman didn’t reflect that on a play where he set a lazy offensive screen and then got upset that Curry didn’t pass him the ball through traffic.
steph frustrated as wiseman sets a screen with no urgency, watch wiseman's reaction when he doesn't get the ball pic.twitter.com/SFzxgLz51s
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) November 4, 2022
Wiseman missed all of last season with an injury and wasn’t a part of the championship team on the court. While he is probably finding his rhythm in the complex Warriors’ offense once again, moments like this don’t reflect well for the youngster after the Warriors showed they can win a championship without him on the floor.
Are The Golden State Warriors Set To Implode?
For a franchise that has had an incredibly storied history in the last decade, the Warriors are looking close to combustion. Teammates have already been fighting, and now a rookie and a veteran are having obvious disagreements on the court. The high-stress situation of providing championships repeatedly burns out most teams after a point. Have we reached the Warriors’ burnout?
It is far too soon to say anything like this. The franchise has been through rocky moments in this era before and has almost always come out on the winning side. This is an incredibly experienced franchise, and Steve Kerr can right the ship. Their problems could be worked out as the team builds more chemistry with each other, but that is a worrying sign for a team that just won a title.
