What’s up with the Golden State Warriors?
The Golden State Warriors are the best team in the league. That’s an easy and fair statement to make heading into the 2022-2023 NBA season. They’ve got Steph Curry as one of their starters, which means that they’ve got the modern game’s elite beatmaker setting up the scene again for everyone to dance to.
The Warriors aren’t just relying on vibes. They’re about to collect Ring No. 4. They’ve got a happy Klay Thompson. Andrew Wiggins is back as a champion. The young guys are a year older. They set the vibe while everyone else adjusts accordingly.
What’s up with the Los Angeles Lakers?
It feels like a lifetime ago since the Los Angeles Lakers were the best team in the league. That was only two years ago. But the Lakers, at this point, appear like a team that has been through the zombie apocalypse. That’s what months without Anthony Davis and a year of Russell Westbrook slander can do to you.
The offseason still hasn’t been kind to the Lakers. Despite getting LeBron Year 20, a healthier Anthony Davis, a new head coach, and a new dog in Patrick Beverley, they’re starting the season with uncertainty about the Westbrook situation. They’ve also picked up Dennis Schroder, but–of course–he’s going to miss about a month after thumb surgery.
Storyline to watch out for
Every time LeBron James and Stephen Curry step on the court, that’s the storyline to watch out for because these are two players who’ve changed the course of the league for the past decade. That’s not even an exaggeration. LeBron and Steph battling each other is so good it’ll make us forget the other storyline that is just screaming for attention: Jordan Poole and Draymond Green.
Prediction
The Warriors are just too good, too polished, and too close a basketball team to lose to a Lakers team that is in soul-searching mode. A loss on opening night when you just got your new jewelry just doesn’t sound like a thing that Golden State would do.
Where to watch
The Warriors begin their road to defending the crown against an underdog Lakers team at 10:00 AM on NBA League Pass.
