Editor’s note: All stats and information are accurate at the time of print on Nov. 17.
Barring major injuries, the Golden State Warriors will win 70 games this season.
This might be the boldest prediction I’ve made so far, because only the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls won at least 70 games in an NBA season, finishing with an incredible 72-10 record.
But I’m actually quite confident the Warriors can get to 70. I think 72 or 73 wins is well within the realm of possibility. When you really think about it, it isn’t that crazy considering the Warriors are already 11-0, and you’ll know if they’ve made it 12 by the time you read this.
It starts with the guy who takes over your Twitter feed with ridiculous highlights every night he plays: Stephen Curry.
There’s not a basketball player on the planet playing at a higher level than Curry, although I’m quite impressed with Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond.
Curry averages 33.4 points per game, and despite shooting a high volume of threes, he shoots 51.7 percent from the field, which is a ridiculously high number when looked at in that context.
Curry mainly draws attention for his scoring, but he chips in to help the Warriors in other areas. He averages 5.1 rebounds per game, 5.6 assists per game and 2.5 steals per game.
If Curry can maintain his 35.5 Player Efficiency Rating this season, he’ll easily surpass the all-time mark set by Wilt Chamberlain more than 50 years ago.
Curry is by no means Michael Jordan, but if you compare Jordan’s stats from the 1995-96 Bulls to Curry’s this season, they look pretty similar.
Unfortunately for other teams, the Bulls were much deeper than Jordan, and unfortunately for other teams, the Warriors have a lot of talent outside of Curry.
Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Harrison Barnes all average double-digit points per game.
Green is chipping in with 12.3 points per game to go along with 7.9 rebounds per game and 7.1 assists per game. He’s also one of the premier defenders in the game.
Thompson has apparently struggled with a back injury and hasn’t started to play close to his highest level. If he gets going, the Warriors’ offense, which is already the best in the league at 114.1 points per game, will be even tougher to stop.
Andrew Bogut, Festus Ezeli and Marreese Speights can hold their own in the post, although Speights has struggled lately. Leandro Barbosa, Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala add more depth at the guard positions.
All said, the Warriors have 10 guys who are averaging more than 10 minutes per game, and sharing the minutes will help keep everyone fresh later on in the season.
I’ve spent a good minute talking up the Golden State offense, and rightfully so. But the Warriors defense also deserves some credit.
The Warriors allow just an average of 97.8 points per game, meaning the defense is doing its share.
Golden State’s defense might not be the most stifling in the NBA, but if your team is allowing fewer than 100 points per game, you’re doing something right. When your team scores as easily as Golden State, allowing fewer than 100 points per game is quite impressive.
The Warriors’ plus-16.3 points per game differential is the largest in the NBA by a wide margin, and it’s thanks to good work on both ends of the floor.
Sure, there are tough games on the schedule. However, the Warriors will almost always be the favorite to win. I know there will be losses at some point, but they’re hard to pinpoint. I don’t think anyone can look at the Warriors’ schedule and say, “They’ll lose that one for sure” about any one game.
The fact that it’s hard for me to see this team losing 10 games when looking at the schedule says it all. Golden State is special.
If the Warriors can avoid the injury bug, they’ll have a great chance to make history.
Jack Woods is a 22-year-old mass communication senior from Ruston, Louisiana. You can reach him on Twitter @Jack_TDR.