Warriors Western Conference standings check-in, November 27
How do the Dubs stack up against the rest of the league?
Even though the last few games have been a combination of dreadful and worrying, it’s still been a tremendous start to the season for the Golden State Warriors. After spending the last two years fighting an uphill battle to emerge out of mediocrity, the Warriors finally appear like a playoff team once more.
And it’s never too early to start looking at those playoff standings. So much will change between now and mid-April, but what transpired over the first month of the 2024-25 NBA season sure matters a lot. So let’s take a look at where the Dubs sit in the Western Conference playoff picture, and where the other 14 teams do, so we can get a feel for how things stack up.
The standings and stats are prior to Wednesday’s slate of games, and the net ratings are all adjusted for garbage time, courtesy of Cleaning The Glass. I’ll try to post an update to the standings every few weeks.
The playoff teams
1. Oklahoma City Thunder — 13-4 record, +12.5 net rating (2nd in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Thunder: 1-0
The Dubs sure looked good the last time they faced the Thunder, though we’ll get an update on this matchup tonight. After finishing as the West’s top seed a year ago — and making some solid offseason moves — it’s no surprise whatsoever that the Thunder are back on top of the conference.
2. Golden State Warriors — 12-5 record, +6.6 net rating (8th in the NBA)
Well, well, well. Second place sure looks better on the Warriors than 10th place, where they finished a year ago! Let’s hope they can stay here ... or perhaps move up.
3. Houston Rockets — 13-6 record, +9.6 net rating (4th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Rockets: 1-0
Last year when I did these check-ins, it always felt like the Rockets had a very strong net rating, but a record that was lagging behind. My theory was that the team had a lot of talent both individually and collectively, but, given how young and inexperienced they were, they hadn’t quite figured out how to win games. It seems that they’ve overcome that issue this year, as they have firmly looked the part of one of the conference’s elite.
4. Memphis Grizzlies — 11-7 record, +8.0 net rating (5th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Grizzlies: 1-0
Thankfully the Dubs have reversed last year’s trend of relentlessly losing to all the top teams in the conference. Like Houston, Memphis may have a better net rating than Golden State, but the Warriors have gotten the best of their early-season matchups, and have a better record as a result.
5. Phoenix Suns — 10-7 record, -1.3 net rating (17th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Suns: Have not played yet
The Suns are certainly a more formidable opponent than their record and net rating suggest ... at least, when healthy. Phoenix started the season 9-2, but have won just one of their six games since. That’s mostly due to injuries, as Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal have both missed seven games already. The Warriors face the Suns on Saturday, and both All-Stars are expected to play.
6. Los Angeles Lakers — 10-7 record, -1.9 net rating (19th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Lakers: Have not played yet
It seems odd to go this long without playing the Lakers, and the two teams will have to wait until Christmas to match up. It’s hard to know what to make of the purple and gold, who have at times impressed and at times disappointed. They opened the year with three straight wins, then lost four of five, before rattling off a six-game win streak ... which was immediately met by a three-game losing streak featuring consecutive losses of 25 and 27 points. Odd team.
The play-in teams
7. LA Clippers — 11-8 record, +1.1 net rating (13th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Clippers: 0-2
The Clippers don’t seem like a particularly strong NBA team, at least not while Kawhi Leonard is out. But they certainly seem like a team that the Warriors hope to avoid in the playoffs, given how things have gone between the two thus far this year.
8. Denver Nuggets — 9-7 record, +2.3 net rating (10th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Nuggets: Have not played yet
Sleep on the Nuggets at your own risk. The 2023 champions have all the talent and all the pieces necessary to compete once again, though Aaron Gordon’s injury has thrown a bit of a wrench in those plans. They might sleepwalk their way to the postseason and end up with a lower seed, but they’re as dangerous as anyone once there.
9. Dallas Mavericks — 10-8 record, +6.7 net rating (7th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Mavs: 1-0
Klay Thompson’s new team might have a record befitting last year’s Warriors, but their net rating is fourth-highest in the Western Conference. After a sluggish start, Dallas is starting to figure things out, having won four of their last five games ... with the lone loss coming in overtime.
10. San Antonio Spurs — 10-8 record, +0.1 net rating (15th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Spurs: 0-1
The Dubs recently suffered a very disappointing loss against the Spurs. San Antonio is likely still a year or three away from competing, but with veteran former Warriors in Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes alongside young super-phenom Victor Wembanyama, they’re now closer to the NBA’s elite than to the basement where they’d been hanging out for a while.
The lottery teams
11. Minnesota Timberwolves — 8-9 record, +1.4 net rating (12th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Wolves: Have not played yet
A year after finishing a game behind the top seed in the West, the Timberwolves haven’t yet found their 2024-25 momentum. A preseason blockbuster trade that brought the Wolves Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo in exchange for Karl-Anthony Towns has yet to pay off, despite encouraging early returns. After a hot start, Minnesota has lost six of their last eight games, including three straight. The Dubs play them three times in December, so we’ll soon get to see firsthand what the Timberwolves are made of.
12. Sacramento Kings — 8-10 record, +1.6 net rating (11th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Kings: Have not played
Barring a meeting in the NBA Cup, the Dubs won’t face their new rivals until next year. It’s been a disappointing season thus for for Northern California’s other team, which had visions of taking a leap after adding DeMar DeRozan following two very encouraging seasons. But it hasn’t happened yet, though they remain firmly in the hunt.
13. Portland Trail Blazers — 7-11 record, -8.6 net rating (26th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Blazers: 1-0
The Dubs started the season off right against the Blazers, winning 140-104 in their first game of the season. Portland has outperformed both expectations and their net rating with a 7-11 record, but they also represent the line of demarcation between the teams that feel like viable playoff contenders and the teams that should look to the future.
14. Utah Jazz — 4-13 record, -8.9 net rating (27th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Jazz: 1-0
Like the Blazers, the Jazz were part of the Dubs’ early-season dominance. Two days after beating Portland by 36 points, Golden State downed Utah by 41, on the road. Perhaps Lauri Markkanen is regretting expressing a strong desire to stay in Salt Lake City this past summer.
15. New Orleans Pelicans — 4-14 record, -12.4 net rating (29th in the NBA)
Warriors record vs. Pelicans: 3-0
While the Dubs have built their strong record with some impressive wins, they’ve also gotten to beat up on the lowly Pelicans quite a bit. I said that Portland was the line where the pretenders began, but New Orleans can fight with the best in the West when healthy. The problem is, they’re simply never healthy. Of their five core players, only one has had a healthy season: Brandon Ingram, who has played in 16 of New Orleans’ 18 games. But Zion Williamson and Trey Murphy III have each missed 12 games, CJ McCollum has missed 13, and Dejounte Murray hasn’t played since the season opener. If the Pels can get healthy, they can easily make a run ... but right now that’s a pretty big “if.”