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Heading into this upcoming season, the Golden State Warriors appeared to be one of the biggest threats to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson were going to be healthy and they added top draft pick James Wiseman. Unfortunately, Thompson tore his Achilles and will be done for the year.
While the Warriors can still be a good team, it’s hard to imagine they can compete for a title this year unless they pull off a big move. Regardless of the Thompson injury, Curry still thinks his team can take on the Lakers.
“We know we can compete with anyone in the league,” Curry said, per Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. “It’s kind of crazy. We know how great Klay [Thompson] is. Don’t get me wrong. But we hear the chatter. ‘It’s the end of for us. This year is a wash. What are we going to do in the future?’ But we are in the moment right now. It’s kind of refreshing being in that category as guys that are chasing. We know [the Lakers] are the defending champs. We got to beat them. We’re ready for it.”
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Do Warriors Have Any Chance Against Lakers?
Curry isn’t about to throw in the towel just yet. He’s still one of the best players in the world and should be healthy. He still has Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins, which are two guys who could still have strong seasons.
However, they’ll need a miracle to actually compete with the Lakers. They just won the title and completely dominated the Western Conference. Plus, they arguably got a lot better this offseason. Perhaps Golden State can recapture some magic next season when Thompson gets healthy but it’s not happening this year. There might not be a single team in the Western Conference that will truly threaten Los Angeles.
Biggest Threat to Lakers Title Defense
The Lakers could’ve easily gone into this offseason with the intention of keeping the band together. They decided to go in the opposite direction and add several strong pieces while letting some key contributors walk. While they won’t have some important players return, there’s almost no doubt that the roster is better than it was last season.
They have two elite bench players in Montrezl Harrell and Dennis Schroder and upgraded a couple of starting spots with Marc Gasol and Wesley Matthews. This team is as close to a superteam as you can get without having a true third star.
A lot can still happen but the Lakers have to be the favorites to win it all right now. Teams like the Warriors, Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks all should be better but they’re not as good as the Lakers. Unless one of the previously mentioned teams can land James Harden without giving up one of their stars, there’s no team that is nearly as good as this current Lakers team.
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