Jun 16, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Jordan Poole (3), guard Stephen Curry (30), and guard Damion Lee (1) celebrate after defeating the Boston Celtics in game six of the 2022 NBA Finals at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 16, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Jordan Poole (3), guard Stephen Curry (30), and guard Damion Lee (1) celebrate after defeating the Boston Celtics in game six of the 2022 NBA Finals at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports
It’s been a rough few seasons for the Golden State Warriors. As recently as 2022, they won the NBA championship and sat at the pinnacle of NBA glory. Today, however, they are struggling to keep up following a series of injuries, player departures, and natural athletic decline.
On paper, the Warriors don’t look like a championship team, and most experts (including some of the players themselves) have already counted them out of the upcoming title race. Even so, the Dubs think their current build is similar to the team that won it all just a few years ago, suggesting that their ambitions go much higher than the critics would have us believe.
“Anything can really happen with the Warriors this season, including the possibility of them tearing down everything around Steph and hitting the reset button at the trade deadline,” wrote Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints. “If you ask anyone within the organization, they feel like they have the depth and skill that matches their 2021-22 team, which surprised many and went on to take down Boston in the NBA Finals. Never say never with the Warriors, especially if they are healthy entering April.”
The 2021-22 Warriors were an underdog to win that year, especially with Klay’s injuries and the absence of Kevin Durant (who played a key role in their back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018). But through the greatness of Steph and the collective contributions of the supporting cast, they shocked the world to win their fourth championship. At the time, their roster included Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, Gary Payton II, Moses Moody, Andre Iguodala, Jonathan Kuminga, Kevon Looney, and Otto Porter Jr. (among others).
It’s not a super team by any stretch, but the Warriors were well-balanced with depth and flexibility at multiple positions. Meanwhile, going into the 2026-27 season, the Warriors’ new roster consists of Steph, Draymond, Moody, Peyton, Jimmy Butler, Kristaps Porzingis, Brandin Podziemski, Al Horford, and De’Anthony Melton. There are some notable names, for sure, but it lacks the youth, depth, and skill level of the 2022 squad. Specifically, this roster lacks a trusted floor spacer around Steph, a critical role that Klay filled for years. It also lacks elite role players like Wiggins and Poole, who helped cover mistakes and broaden the margin for error.
Ultimately, we’ll have to wait until the season starts to properly judge this team, but there is no greater evidence of their position than their own actions this offseason. As much as they are showing confidence now, they tried aggressively to change this roster over the summer, and only ran it back after all the best players were off the board. They were considered in the Giannis trade and tried to make a move for LeBron, only to come up empty. The best they could do was re-sign their own core players (Draymond Green and Kristaps Porzingis) while adding fringe bench pieces in free agency (Georges Niang, Brandon Williams).
So, while the Warriors claim they have a path to contention as-is, the evidence suggests otherwise. Between the lack of depth, aging veterans, and limited star power, nobody really expects them to make significant noise in 2026-27. But stranger things have happened before in the NBA, and we learned in 2022 never to count them out completely.