Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, Knicks
Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
The Golden State Warriors have achieved their goal of getting to the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference. Now, the Warriors are within an eyeshot of overtaking the Houston Rockets for the No. 5 seed out West.
Warriors could realistically continue surge in standings
Golden State of Mind’s Brady Klopfer outlined how the Warriors could leapfrog the Rockets in their upcoming stretch of games:
“While the Dubs were winning a road back-to-back against the Charlotte Hornets and New York Knicks on Monday and Tuesday, the Rockets were losing their own road back-to-back against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers,” Klopfer wrote.
“The Rockets have now lost three in a row, and 11 of their last 16 games. Their lead over the Warriors is just three games, and Golden State has already secured the tiebreaker between the two teams; in other words, it’s well within the Warriors’ reach, even if it won’t be easy.”
Jimmy Butler III, Moses Moody, Warriors, knicks
Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Warriors have momentum on their side to climb in the West
Winners of nine of their last 11 games since Jimmy Butler got to town, the Warriors are rolling at the right time. Golden State just picked up their biggest win in the Butler era over the Knicks on Tuesday night.
What makes the Warriors’ situation even better is that the Rockets are not the only team they can surpass. The No. 4-seeded Memphis Grizzlies are 4.5 games ahead of Golden State. If the Rockets would not be a mountain to climb to get ahead of, neither would the Grizzlies.
It is well within the realm of possibility for the Warriors to, at the least, create a cushion between them and the teams vying to climb out of the play-in spots in the conference.
Looking ahead, Golden State has a favorable slate in front of them. They’ll take on the Brooklyn Nets (21-40) and Portland Trail Blazers (28-34) in two of their next three games. That could help them further narrow the gap between them and Houston and continue their efforts to forge championship continuity in the Bay.
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