The Golden State Warriors’ Christmas Day announcement against the Denver Nuggets may have revealed more than the team intended.
In the odd, AI-like image the Warriors used to unveil the matchup, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Brandin Podziemski, Kristaps Porzingis and Yaxel Lendeborg are shown together while Curry opens a present. That group lines up with a projected starting five, though it differs slightly from another version that would have Gui Santos in the lineup instead of Lendeborg.
Lendeborg, at least, has already looked the part in Summer League, even if that came against lesser competition. By midseason, he should be part of the regular starting rotation.
The bigger takeaway from the image is the assumption that all five players would be healthy enough to take the floor on Christmas. That would be a minor miracle, but it’s the scenario the graphic seems to suggest.
Jimmy Butler will not be ready by then, and neither will Moses Moody. It also looks unlikely that Golden State will add anyone else this offseason who could realistically break into a healthy starting five.
If the Warriors had a time machine, maybe they would use it to make a stronger push for Jaylen Brown or LeBron James. But they don’t, and apparently the geniuses in Silicon Valley are still busy with AI rather than time travel.
Health is going to shape just about everything for this team next season, even if the high-end outcome is only a No. 5 or No. 6 seed in the Western Conference. If that projected five is the group the Warriors are rolling out, there’s at least a path to being around .500 by Christmas.
That would count as a win for this roster, and it would probably mean the team hasn’t been wrecked by injuries. For a group trying to hold things together, that may be the whole point.
It’s not a flashy picture, and it’s not a particularly thrilling starting five. But between the strange graphic and the lukewarm reaction it invited, it might be the cleanest snapshot yet of where the Warriors stand right now.
In Other News...
Warriors Opening Night Snub Puts New Pressure On Stephen Curry
The Warriors will have to wait an extra day to get their season started, and that alone says something about where they stand in the leagues current hierarchy. Golden State was left off the NBAs opening night slate on Oct. 20, a rare omission for a franchise that has spent much of the past decade as appointment viewing. Instead, the Warriors will open the regular season Oct. 21 against the Lakers, a matchup that should still draw plenty of attention even without the leagues spotlight.
There is a consolation prize, of course, and it is one the Warriors have come to expect: a Christmas Day home game against the Nuggets, extending their 14-year run on the holiday showcase. But opening night matters, too, because it is where the league often signals which teams are central to the story line. For Stephen Curry and a Warriors group still trying to reassert itself among the NBAs headliners, not being part of that first wave adds a little more pressure to make sure the seasons next big stage looks different. [Read more 🡒]
Stephen Curry Just Put A Massive Warriors Decision In Focus
Mike Dunleavy Jr. tried to calm any nerves around Stephen Currys future by making clear that the Warriors believe their franchise star will finish his career in Golden State. For a team built around Currys entire era, the question is less about whether he belongs there and more about how the next chapter gets handled, especially with the organization still navigating what comes after a long run of contention.
Currys contract situation keeps the conversation from fading away. He has the ability to shape the timeline himself, and if he chooses not to lock in his long-term future now, the Warriors could be staring at a much bigger decision next summer. Dunleavy made it clear the front office understands that Curry has earned the right to steer his own path, which is why this storyline remains one of the most important on Golden States radar. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Get An Early Test Against A Star-Powered Lakers Team
The Warriors will get an immediate measuring stick when the NBA opens the 2026-27 season on Oct. 21, with Golden State set to meet the Lakers in a marquee Western Conference showcase. It is the kind of early spotlight that can shape the mood around a season before it really gets going, especially for a Warriors team coming off a year that ended without a playoff berth.
Los Angeles will bring plenty of intrigue into that opener as well, starting its first game without LeBron James after his reported offseason move to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Lakers still have the look of a team built to contend after making the playoffs last season, even if their run ended at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder, which gives this matchup an added edge for Golden State right out of the gate. [Read more 🡒]