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The 2020-21 Golden State Warriors were not the weak team from the 2019-20 NBA campaign, but they were not the dominant force we saw between 2014 and 2019 either.
Stephen Curry won the scoring title in a season in which many critics thought the two-time NBA MVP winner had something to prove, and he was excellent for the Golden State Warriors.
The team had an up-and-down season, but they were mostly competitive behind Curry's offensive prowess and a solid defense guided by former Defensive Player of the Year award winner Draymond Green.
Steve Kerr's squad went 39-33 in the regular season, but fell to the LA Lakers and Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA's Play-In tournament, which forced them to miss the NBA Playoffs.
Still, without Klay Thompson and a new core of players behind Curry and Green, the Golden State Warriors' 2020-21 NBA campaign was not a failure but an opportunity to start building a new contending team.
In this article, though, we will take a look at five things that went wrong for the Golden State Warriors in the 2020-21 NBA campaign.
Without further ado, let us start.
#5 James Wiseman's rookie season was plagued by injuries
The Golden State Warriors selected James Wiseman with the second pick of the 2020 NBA Draft. Out of Memphis (though he only played three college games due to issues with his recruitment), Wiseman looked like a player who could be dominant in the NBA.
His 7-feet frame at age 19 looked too good for the Golden State Warriors to ignore on Draft night, and Wiseman had some great moments at the start of the year.
Wiseman showed good skills and good shooting out of the gate in his NBA debut against the Brooklyn Nets, scoring 19 points. He was a starter for the team since his first NBA night, but injuries hindered Wiseman's rookie campaign.
The big man only played 39 of the 72 regular-season games for the Golden State Warriors, but still averaged 11.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game with 51/31/62 shooting splits. A wrist injury kept him off the court early in the season, while a meniscus issue ended his rookie campaign in April.
#4 Though Andrew Wiggins showed up and Draymond Green was a great playmaker, the offense was not great
Andrew Wiggins did not have high expectations placed on him before the 2020-21 NBA season started, but again, even Stephen Curry was expected to struggle mightily with the Golden State Warriors in the 2020-21 campaign.
Wiggins still had a good season, averaging 18.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game with 47/38/71 shooting splits, and even had a good year on defense, leading the team with one block per game.
On the other end, Draymond Green had arguably his best season in terms of playmaking. Green, apart from being the team's best defender (and a finalist for the DPOY), averaged a career-high 8.9 assists per game and was comfortable with the ball on his hands.
Still, the Golden State Warriors' offense only ranked 20th in Offensive Rating in the 2020-21 NBA season and was the reason behind the team's struggle to find consistency.
#3 The Golden State Warriors' bench had some good moments, but it wasn't elite
Eric Paschall and Jordan Poole were solid players for the Golden State Warriors off the bench anytime they were available for Steve Kerr. Paschall, who had to endure some injuries and played only 40 games, had a good sophomore season, giving the team 9.5 points per game off the bench with 49/33/71 shooting splits.
On the other side, Poole was fourth on the team in scoring, but he appeared in only 51 of the Golden State Warriors' 72 regular-season games. He averaged 12 points per game on 43/35/88 shooting splits in 51 games (seven starts) and was third on the team in three-point baskets (97).
Still, the Golden State Warriors' bench was not among the NBA's elite, and that would've certainly been helpful for the team's struggling offense outside Stephen Curry.
The bench was not bad, but it only ranked 16th in the NBA in points per game (36.1), 13th in field-goal percentage (46%) and 12th in three-point shooting.
#2 Kelly Oubre Jr. didn't have a great year from the three-point line
Kelly Oubre Jr. arrived to the Golden State Warriors before the 2020-21 NBA season started. Oubre was traded by the Phoenix Suns to the OKC Thunder in the Chris Paul trade on November 16th, 2020. Then, the Golden State Warriors acquired him six days later in exchange for draft picks.
Oubre Jr. was coming off the best offensive year of his NBA career as he averaged 18.7 points per game for the Phoenix Suns in the 2019-20 season with 45/35/78 shooting splits.
However, Oubre's first year with the Golden State Warriors was difficult, especially early in the year. Oubre eventually managed to average 15.4 points and 6 rebounds per game as coach Kerr gave him the confidence to start in 50 of his 55 appearances.
Still, his efficiency was not there, even though chances were roughly the same as his previous season with the Phoenix Suns. Oubre put up 43/31/69 shooting splits in the 2020-21 NBA season and ranked 148th out of 155 qualified three-point shooters in the entire league.
#1 Klay Thompson's injury in the NBA pre-season
Well, this is arguably one of the five most impactful injuries of the 2020-21 NBA regular season, and it happened before it even started. Klay Thompson was sidelined for the entire 2019-20 NBA season after tearing his ACL in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals.
However, the five-time All-Star and three-time NBA champion was set to return for the Golden State Warriors in the 2020-21 NBA season, and the team was starting to be considered among the contenders, with Thompson and Stephen Curry healthy.
Around a month before the start of the 2020-21 NBA season, Thompson ruptured his right Achilles tendon and was forced to miss an entire NBA season for the second consecutive campaign.
It definitely hurt the Golden State Warriors, as the return of the two-time All-NBA and All-Defensive shooting guard would've been essential for the team on both ends of the floor.
Also read: 5 NBA players who could decline their contract options to become free agents in the 2021 offseason
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