The Golden State Warriors had a bit of a hiccup in a double-overtime thriller against the Houston Rockets this past week, but at 17-3 they head into this busy week with the best record in the NBA. They still have the best offensive rating in NBA history (114.8 points per 100 possessions), and they continue to generate headlines unlike any team in the league.
The latest: coach Steve Kerr said a totally reasonable thing about medical marijuana, TNT analyst Charles Barkley said a totally unreasonable thing about the Warriors' style and forward Draymond Green's flailing limbs are back in the national conversation. Who knows what'll be next?
WARRIORS CHECK-IN
Record: 17-3
Scoring leader: Kevin Durant (27.3)
Assists leader: Draymond Green (7.4)
Rebounding leader: Draymond Green (8.8)
Last week: Defeated Hawks, lost to Rockets, defeated Suns (2-1)
GAMES THIS WEEK
Monday, 10:30 p.m. ET: Indiana Pacers
Where: Oracle Arena in Oakland, California
TV: NBA TV
Streaming: PlayStation Vue
Wednesday, 10:30 p.m. ET: Los Angeles Clippers
Where: Staples Center in Los Angeles, California
TV: ESPN
Streaming: WatchESPN
Thursday, 9 p.m. ET: Utah Jazz
Where: Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah
TV: NBA League Pass
Streaming: NBA League Pass
Saturday, 8 p.m. ET: Memphis Grizzlies
Where: FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tennessee
TV: NBA League Pass
Streaming: NBA League Pass
Sunday, 7 p.m. ET: Minnesota Timberwolves
Where: Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV: NBA League Pass
Streaming: NBA League Pass
KEEP AN EYE ON ...
Midweek muscle: It's not clear if any team will truly challenge this Golden State group in the playoffs, but if anyone does, the formula will probably be similar to what we saw the Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder do last season: punish the Warriors on the glass, be as versatile and disciplined on defense as possible and push the ball when opportunities present themselves. In the Los Angeles Clippers and Utah Jazz, their opponents on a back-to-back this week, they will face two teams that theoretically have the pieces to execute that game plan.
The Clippers don't scare this super-team -- Golden State won all four regular-season meetings last season and three of four in 2014-15. Los Angeles usually manages to keep things close, though, and -- aside from a recent three-game losing streak that ended with a scolding about humility from coach Doc Rivers -- its core four of Chris Paul, J.J. Redick, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan have never played better together.
Like the Clippers, the Jazz made the Warriors work for victories last year. Again, Golden State swept the season series, but one of their wins against Utah was in overtime and another was decided by three points. Also like the Clippers, the Jazz boast a fearsome frontcourt: Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert. Favors has a bone bruise in his knee and hasn't been in the lineup since Nov. 17, though, so it's unclear if the Warriors will see them at full strength.
Draymond's DPOY campaign: It's too early to be talking about this, but I'm giving in because Green and Kerr started the discussion already. A couple of keys to his candidacy are Golden State's overall team defense and him making memorable defensive plays. Another part of this, though, is the fact that the man who famously guards all five positions has taken on an even bigger role on that end this season. He's playing more center with the Megadeath Lineup than ever before, and that means that this week he could wind up battling with Myles Turner, Jordan, Gobert, Marc Gasol and Karl-Anthony Towns. What a week.
Managing minutes: This is obviously roughest part of the schedule so far for the Warriors, and it's not just these five games in seven days -- after all this, they'll finish their road trip in New Orleans next Tuesday. Back in October, Kerr told reporters that they would "pace ourselves somewhat" -- if that means he's going to give his stars a few DNPs to rest, it would make sense that he would start at some point on this trip.
Of course, Golden State's excellence naturally builds in some rest because Kerr can sit starters in the fourth quarter of blowouts. Durant is leading the team in minutes with an average of 35.1, and Curry is at 33.6, a little less than last year. If the Warriors can annihilate the Pacers, who will be on the second night of a back-to-back after a 111-102 win against the Clippers, then it might make the pair of back-to-backs a little easier.
BIGGEST ONE-ON-ONE MATCHUP
Curry vs. Paul. But I could have said Green vs. Griffin or Klay Thompson vs. J.J. Redick. This Warriors-Clippers game is as big as it gets during the regular season, so we should all be hoping that both sides are fully healthy on Wednesday. These two teams' battles have been competitive and exciting over the past couple of years, even though Golden State has almost always come out on top.
Back to Curry and Paul. Depending on how you feel about Russell Westbrook and James Harden, this is either a battle between the two best point guards in the NBA or simply two of the top four. Their styles are different -- Paul demolishes defenses clinically, while Curry does it with demoralizing home-run shots -- but they're both killers. It's always been fun to watch them go at it, even when Curry was younger and Paul could push him around.
