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The Golden State Warriors had an ugly end to their 2020-21 NBA season. After a masterful season by Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, the Warriors squandered both NBA play-in tournament games and failed to enter the NBA playoffs. They in fact finished the season as the tentative eighth seed and were six games above .500 (39-33) which makes their lack of a playoff appearance even more painful.
Top 5 Golden State Warriors blunders this season
Even in the shortened 72-game season, the Golden State Warriors managed to make some serious mistakes. The front office took the bulk of the blame for missing the playoffs as they failed to act in the team's best interest. Curry broke and set several records this season, and Draymond Green made the NBA All-Defensive first team. However, the supporting cast was a big question mark as Curry was asked to carry the burden by himself. So without further ado, let's take a look at the five biggest mistakes made by the Golden State Warriors in the 2020-21 NBA season.
#1 Failing to use the Disabled Player Exception
After learning of Klay Thompson's season-ending Achilles injury, the Golden State Warriors applied for a Disabled Player Exception. The exception allows a team that is over the cap limit to replace a disabled player (who will be out for the remainder of that season). The NBA granted the Golden State Warriors the DPE worth $9.2 million to sign a player for this season to replace Klay Thompson in the lineup and it wouldn't take a hit on the cap.
But to everyone's surprise, the Golden State Warriors front office didn't even bother using the exception to sign any players. It fueled rage among Dub Nation fans and questions were being asked as to why the team would even bother applying for $9.2 million and then not use it. The Warriors struggled for the majority of the season without Thompson and signing a new player would have eased the burden on Stephen Curry.
#2 Quiet at the NBA trade deadline
The Golden State Warriors were progressing well and the league was completely aware of the season Stephen Curry was having. Curry broke records day after day and the NBA trade deadline was the perfect opportunity for the Golden State Warriors to make some significant additions to help the two-time MVP.
However, the team made absolutely no major moves. Despite Curry putting on a show every night, the front office failed to recognize the urgency of the situation. They didn't act at the NBA trade deadline when the rest of the league was busy upgrading their rosters. One could argue that the team got worse at the trade deadline. They traded away Brad Wanamaker for nothing in return except a 2025 second-round pick. The Warriors also traded Marquese Chriss to the Spurs in exchange for rights to Cady Lalanne, a player who has never stepped foot on an NBA court.
It was decisions like these that sparked rumors regarding Steph Curry's future with the franchise. Many news outlets reported that Curry's patience was wearing thin and that even at 33 years old, he was asked to carry all the burden by himself.
#3 Failed to surround Stephen Curry with shooters
Stephen Curry led the league in scoring at age 33 while being double and triple-teamed. The lack of Klay Thompson on the floor made it easier for defenders to crowd Curry and deny him the ball. He broke and set several records this season and despite his greatness on display, the front office did not do what was necessary to surround him with talent.
Golden State Warriors GM Bob Myers spoke about the same, saying,
"I really like our defense, but offensively, and you saw it too, how Steph was being guarded. It's not fair to him. One guy can't do that much. It's a compliment to him clearly, that he got the attention he got, but that's very hard, and a lot to ask of him to shoulder that burden by himself. So we need to help him on the offensive side."
The supporting cast was so bad that the offensive rating fell by historic margins when Curry left the floor. It was dubbed the "non-Curry" minutes when Steph went to rest on the bench and unsurprisingly those minutes were a disaster for the team. With Curry on the floor, the team had the 13th-best offense in the league for the season but when he left, it fell down to the seventh-worst offense in NBA history. Hashtags such as #FreeSteph started trending as many fans and analysts suggested that the team wasted one year of Curry's prime.
#4 Skipping practice in the middle of the season
Although not as important as the other points mentioned here, coach Steve Kerr made a decision that would haunt the team for weeks. The Golden State Warriors were on an incredible run in the final stretch of the season. Stephen Curry was in the middle of arguably the best shooting month of any player in NBA history. They had won seven of their last nine games and in the midst of their run, the Golden State Warriors staff decided to not practice between games.
It could have been a decision to maintain players health but it wasn't well-received by the media and the fans. It wasn't the case that the Golden State Warriors were a superstar team capable of taking time off. It came back to bite them as they fell hard to the Dallas Mavericks. Luka Doncic and co. entered the building and blew the team by 30 points as not a single member of the Warriors other than Curry was able to make shots.
After the loss, the line of questioning was focused on why the team would miss practice in the middle of a crucial playoff push. The 30-point blow took away the entire momentum from their run and demoralized several players and fans.
#5 Passing on LaMelo Ball in the 2020 NBA Draft
The Golden State Warriors had the 2nd overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft and LaMelo Ball got picked 3rd. The team went with James Wiseman from Memphis and although he wasn't a bad pickup in any way, passing on an extraordinary talent like LaMelo Ball is going to sting.
LaMelo Ball led the rookies in eight of the 10 statistical categories before his injury. Many are calling him this season's runaway Rookie of the Year and it wouldn't even be up for debate had he not missed games. Since entering the Hornets starting lineup, Ball averaged 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game. Ball was, in fact, on the league leaderboard for most steals at one point and also broke the record for the youngest player in NBA history with a triple-double.
Now James Wiseman is not a scrub by any means and the Golden State Warriors desperately need size on their roster. He averaged 11.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game and gave the Warriors a seven-foot presence in the paint. Although he is not nearly the shooter, LaMelo Ball is and doesn't make the skillset that Ball possesses. LaMelo Ball is clearly an NBA-ready player who took the league by storm the day he arrived, whereas Wiseman is a player who will take time to develop.
Also Read: 3 Golden State Warriors players unlikely to return with the team in the 2021-22 NBA season
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