A Steph Curry MVP run, and 4 extra predictions for the Warriors 2025-26 season

LOS ANGELES – The Warriors start the 2025-26 season in Los Angeles with the identical, an identical purpose that each different Golden State iteration has: to win a championship.

Though the final word purpose stays unchanged, the probabilities that exist between Tuesday’s regular-season opener and a hypothetical fifth title of the Steph Curry and Steve Kerr period are virtually limitless.

With the season starting, listed here are 5 predictions for the Warriors’ season between at times.

The Warriors lead the league in 3-point makes an attempt, break Celtics’ document

The Warriors, who revolutionized the basketball world with high-volume 3-point capturing, aren’t at present represented within the prime three for many lengthy bombs tried in a season. 

Final 12 months’s Celtics used coach Joe Mazzula’s penchant for 3s to aim a mind-boggling 48.3 triples an evening, three greater than the 2019 and 2020 James Harden-led Rockets. The Warriors have led the league in quantity solely twice, as soon as in 2015-16 and the opposite in 2022-23, after they averaged 43.2 makes an attempt, good for fourth all-time.

That can change this season. With Al Horford’s sharp capturing now at heart for many video games, and an older roster that’s not precisely stocked with gamers who get to the rim, all the components are there for the Warriors to let it fly at a historic fee. 

If the preseason is something to go by, this isn’t a far-fetched prediction. Even with Curry and the vets taking part in solely round 20 minutes an evening, the Warriors launched 45.3 3-pointers a recreation. 

Jonathan Kuminga will stay a Warrior for your entire season

Kuminga might have ended his summer-long negotiation with a brand new $46.5 million contract, however there may be an expectation that he’s a prime candidate to be traded as soon as eligible on Jan. 15. 

The ahead with tantalizing offensive potential and a want to be a featured scorer is not going to be that – at the least persistently – on a staff that stars Curry and Jimmy Butler. 

However as an alternative of being despatched to a spot with extra out there pictures, wouldn’t or not it’s one thing if Golden State stored Kuminga by way of the commerce deadline?

He has, stunningly, develop into a keen and efficient passer to begin 12 months 5 within the Warriors system, averaging a fair 4 assists per recreation within the preseason. Kuminga has run the ground arduous, defended with effort and (largely) been an element on the boards. 

“Being involved on both sides, and if it’s on defense and it’s ‘Go guard the best player,’ or if it’s ‘We need you to score’ or ‘We need you to guard certain people,’” Kuminga mentioned at his first preseason press convention. “I feel like that’s what I’m looking forward to.”

Is it actually that a lot of a stretch to imagine that the Warriors, whereas gunning for playoff seeding, would somewhat preserve Kuminga for the stretch run, somewhat than commerce him for gamers who might or might not match with the staff?

Steph Curry makes a run at MVP

Predicting an awesome Steph Curry season appears as mundane as rush hour site visitors on 101. 

However even coming off a second-team All-NBA season final 12 months, calling for Curry to be a top-three MVP finisher could be fully unprecedented at his age (37) at his top (6-foot-2). 

So right here’s the argument for Curry contending for the MVP 10 years after his historic 2015-16 season. 

He’s nonetheless an elite offensive engine, averaging 24.5 factors per recreation final season because the staff’s driving drive. The Warriors’ offense fell off a cliff towards Minnesota as soon as he was misplaced for the collection after Recreation 1. 

He’s nonetheless in elite bodily form.

“He works at it all year round, and he’s one of the best conditioned athletes I’ve ever seen,” Kerr mentioned. 

And even when he solely performs 65-70 video games, that’s nonetheless sufficient to make an impression on the voters. 

And since Golden State shall be taking part in significant video games in March and April, that may give Curry an opportunity to have large video games in moments that matter because the Warriors battle for playoff seeding.

Add in the truth that there shall be nights when Butler and Inexperienced and Horford might not play, leaving the highlight to relaxation solely on Curry.  

He completed ninth in MVP voting final season, however he’ll be named one in all three finalists for the award this season. 

Warriors keep away from the play-in

The Warriors have been victims of the dreaded play-in match for the previous two seasons, the primary blamed on a core that had run its course, the second owed to a mad post-Butler sprint adopted by befuddling losses within the closing week. 

A full season of Butler and the continued excellence of the returning veterans must be sufficient for the Warriors to earn the fifth seed. That would go away them secure from the play-in match, however with out homecourt benefit within the first spherical. 

Whereas ESPN’s statistical mannequin made waves by calling for a 58-win season, frequent sense says in any other case. 

Curry will flip 38, and each Butler and Inexperienced will end the season at 36 whereas Horford turns 40 in early June. Anticipating these 4 future Corridor of Famers to stay wholesome sufficient for the Warriors to push 60 victories is nonsense. 

Which additionally means …. 

Warriors threaten document for many beginning lineup mixtures

Golden State might skip the play-in, however day-to-day roster continuity is not going to be the first motive why – that’s for certain. 

The Warriors used a whopping 37 beginning lineups final season, and all the items are in place for them to smash that determine in 2025-26. 

Kerr has repeatedly mentioned he expects to maintain Horford and the vets on a metaphorical pitch depend this season. 

A constant beginning lineup? Please. 

“Some teams, some years, you spend five minutes on the rotation because you see it, clear as day and move on to the next subject,” Kerr mentioned Monday. “We just talked for an hour today as a coaching staff about all of the different possible five-man combinations.”

The beginning 5 will possible be extra idea than actuality as soon as the winter months hit, and Kerr is performing a juggling act of minutes and rotations, particularly in back-to-back units. 

So sure, that Kuminga-led group that featured Quinten Publish, Buddy Hield, Brandin Podziemski and Inexperienced within the first 5 in Los Angeles in the course of the preseason could possibly be an actual beginning lineup in some unspecified time in the future.