Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel is not taking the Golden State Warriors lightly heading into the 2019-20 season despite their roster changes.
While the Los Angeles Lakers have been toiling near the bottom of the NBA for the last six years, the Golden State Warriors have become the cream of the crop. While the Lakers have missed the postseason six straight years, Golden State has made it all six years, including five straight trips to the NBA Finals.
Golden State has been the epitome of success for over half a decade. They have drafted and developed masterfully and got lucky in free agency, adding Kevin Durant for two seasons. However, for the first time since 2014, the Warriors don’t look like a juggernaut entering the season.
For starters, Durant left in free agency, signing with the Brooklyn Nets. He could miss the season because of an Achilles injury suffered in the finals against the Toronto Raptors. Klay Thompson also tore his ACL in that series, delaying his 2019-20 season as well. Andre Iguodala was traded for salary cap relief
As a result, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green will be tasked with carrying the load. D’Angelo Russell was acquired as part of the sign-and-trade involving Durant. He gives the Warriors a dynamic backcourt but is a downgrade overall from Thompson.
With some major rotation changes coming, people have written off the Warriors for the upcoming season. With so many other teams in the Western Conference improving, there are many people that don’t believe the Warriors will stack up during the 2019-20 season. Lakers’ head coach Frank Vogel is not one of those people.
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In a recent discussion with Steve Aschburner of NBA.com, Vogel discussed the current landscape of the Western Conference. While he agrees things are more open, he believes that the Warriors are being slept on.
"I agree that it’s more open. But I think people are sleeping on Golden State if they think they’re still not going to be a great team. I definitely think that they are. But it does seem more balanced. There’s a lot being written about Big Twos instead of the Big Three era. To me, there are more teams that seem to have a reasonable chance to win it all."
Vogel is correct in his assessment of the Warriors. While they aren’t as loaded as years past, they still have a great trio in Curry, Green and Russell. Once Thompson gets back into the fold, they will have a foursome not many teams in the NBA can compete with.
The NBA is going to be a lot of fun this season with competitive balance returning to the league. There are nearly 10 teams with legitimate title chances this season with the league seemingly moving away from Big 3’s to dominant duos with more depth around them.
The 2019 NBA Finals showed how much depth was needed. The Warriors were unable to overcome the injuries they suffered and the Raptors took full advantage.
Despite coming up short there, Vogel still has respect for the Warriors. The rest of the NBA should as well, as the combination of a former MVP in Curry and Defensive Player of the Year in Green, with a budding All-Star in Russell, should not be taken lightly.