5 reasons why Warriors' opening night loss is NOT A BIG DEAL
For the second straight season, the star-studded Golden State Warriors kicked off their campaign with a loss to a Conference contender. Last year, it was to the San Antonio Spurs while this year it was to James Harden and the Houston Rockets.
Right from the beginning of the off-season, once Golden State had retained most of their core and added deadly role players, they were considered runaway favorites to repeat as Champions.
While the night began how any of the 30 NBA teams would want theirs to - raising a championship banner to the rafters - it didn't end well for the reigning champions.
They've had plenty luck go their way en route to their two championships in the last three years, but it would be unfair to change their projection for this season based on this one game and here's why:
#5 Warriors were not at full strength
Citing the absence of Andre Iguodala, who was declared inactive prior to the game, as an excuse for the Warriors' loss wouldn't be right. However, at the same time, not having him on the court is a huge deal for the team given his defense, offense and playmaking contributions.
Iguodala was ruled out because of a back strain but he and head coach Steve Kerr are optimistic that he's on the right track to quickly make it back on the court.
Draymond Green missed the entire fourth quarter after he injured his left knee in the closing seconds of the third quarter. He's slated to get an MRI done before the team departs for the first back-to-back of their schedule at New Orleans and then Memphis. His absence down the stretch of the game also played a huge part in the Rockets' making their comeback.
The Warriors also missed an additional role player in Omri Casspi. He had already rolled his right ankle in the preseason finale and four minutes into his Warriors' debut, he sprained his left ankle.