NBA rumors: Warriors’ 30-game plan comes into focus

The Golden State Warriors have gotten off to a strong start to the 2024-25 NBA season despite a tough loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday evening in a game they were trailing for most of the way. Stephen Curry has worked his way back nicely from a recent injury, and Golden State currently sits at 10-3, good for second place in the Western Conference.

This season is the first of a new era for Golden State after Klay Thompson left the team in free agency. The Warriors also made some key acquisitions over the offseason, including Buddy Hield, Kyle Anderson, and others, and now, more intel is coming out about how the team envisioned Steve Kerr and company using the opening portion of this season to get things straightened out, per Kendra Andrews of ESPN.

“The Warriors wanted to use the first 30 games to help coach Steve Kerr to solidify his starting lineup and rotation, a source told ESPN,” reported Andrews.

Andrews also reported that Kerr’s ideal starting lineup features De’Anthony Melton, Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis, with Buddy Hield being the first one off the bench and others behind him seeing their minutes vary by night.

“However, because Kerr’s 12-man rotation has worked so well, there doesn’t seem to be too much pressure to cut people out. As it stands, no player has a problem with this,” reported Andrews.

A strong start for the Warriors

While the Warriors weren’t necessarily expected to fall off of a cliff in the wake of Thompson’s departure, few could have seen a start this impressive on the horizon this year, especially considering the time that Curry was forced to miss due to injury.

Buddy Hield has been magnificent for the Warriors so far this year, and the team has also seen a much more mature version of Draymond Green anchoring the defense and providing his signature playmaking on offense.

Thompson’s departure seems to have opened up more of a green light for young players like Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, each of whom are off to hot starts to the campaign. Overall, vibes are as positive in the Bay Area as they have been in quite some time.

In any case, the Warriors are next slated to take the floor on Wednesday evening at home vs the Atlanta Hawks. That game is slated to tip off at 10:00 PM ET.