On Sunday, Sept. 28, the Golden State Warriors made many moves to bolster their team, including signing Boston Celtic Al Horford to a multi-year contract.
The veteran Horford was not the only player to ink a deal with the Warriors last Sunday, negotiations with forward Jonathan Kuminga finally ended when Kuminga signed a two-year $46.8 million dollar deal with the Dubs. Golden State also officially signed their second-round picks Will Richard and Alex Toohey to contracts while getting commitments from Gary Payton and De’Anthony Melton to return to the Warriors. To cap off the moves, General Manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. signed Curry’s brother Seth to provide some depth off the bench.
What do all the acquisitions mean for the Curry led Warriors? It signals that they are making one last push to win in this era of Warriors basketball while also looking towards a future without Curry. The 37-year-old Curry, who is entering year 17 in the NBA has been healthy for the past few years, but you never know when father time will rear its ugly head. That also goes for fellow longtime Warrior Draymond Green and 2025 midseason acquisition Jimmy Butler, who recently turned 36.
All three of these players, along with Horford, always show up in the playoffs. However, can a veteran squad like this reach the top of the NBA mountain, or do they need a strong supporting cast?
Players like Buddy Hield will be critical for this team. The sharpshooter was the active recordholder for most NBA games played without appearing in the playoffs. After a sub-par performance in the 2024 playoffs with Philadelphia, Hield caught fire in game 7 of the first round against the Houston Rockets. Hield had 33 points on 9-11 shooting from three in the Dubs 14-point win. If he can show up and provide valuable shooting it will go a long way on a contending team like Golden State.
That brings us to the young core that has been developing in Golden State for some time now. Kuminga, Brandon Podziemski, Quinten Post and Moses Moody among others have been either waiting in the wings or already making an impact for Head Coach Steve Kerr. Podziemski and Kuminga have a chance at starting this year and being a valuable option for the team while Post has a chance to continue developing his game with veterans Horford and Green. The Boston College graduate averaged 8.1 points on almost 45% shooting from the field, emerging late in the season as a rotational big man for the squad. Once Horford and Green are gone, it will be up to Post and former Indiana Hoosier standout Trayce Jackson-Davis to man the paint for the Dubs.
With these young pieces surrounding the veterans, what is the ceiling for a squad like this? Of course, everyone in Golden State is thinking championship or bust based off their decade of dominance. However, is that possible with this team?
The last time they won was 2022 when they easily went through a weak Western Conference and finished off an inexperienced Celtics team in 6 games. Key pieces of that team are almost all gone including Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole and even longtime Warrior Kevon Looney who left this offseason to sign with the Pelicans.
These players were instrumental in that championship run and it is unclear yet whether these youngsters can fill their shoes in the postseason.
The Warriors have not made the conference finals since 2022, including missing the playoffs entirely in 2024. There have not been many signs showing they can get back to championship mode, but with players like Horford, Butler and Green on the roster, there is always a chance.
The key to this team is staying healthy, most of these veterans have been healthy their whole career besides Butler who has had a few nagging injuries but always tries to play through it. If they can pace themselves during the 82-game regular season, they will be ready for playoffs in the Spring.
Golden State matches up well against teams like the Rockets and Lakers in the Western Conference but could run into trouble facing the likes of the Nuggets, Timberwolves and reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder. If they can stay away from that side of the bracket until the conference finals, they will only have to beat one of these three teams.
The Golden State Warriors have won four NBA championships since 2015, a fifth would cement Curry as the greatest point guard ever and put a knot in one of the greatest dynasties this century.