The Warriors have spent the early part of this season trying to clean up one of their biggest problem areas, and Stephen Curry’s absence makes that mission a lot more important.
Golden State made it clear before the season that reducing turnovers was a priority. That was no small thing after last year, when the mistakes piled up and helped fuel the kind of uneven offensive stretches that made the team so volatile. When the rotation thinned out, the Warriors kept handing opponents extra chances, and with Curry missing much of the back half of 2025-26, they simply couldn’t keep living that way.
There has been real progress in 2026-27. Yaxel Lendeborg has stepped into a legitimate secondary ball-handling role and has taken over playmaking duties whenever Curry has been off the floor, basically from opening night. The result is a better ranking in the turnover column: Golden State sits 17th in the league now, a clear jump from 27th last season.
Still, the raw numbers tell a messier story. The Warriors are actually averaging more turnovers than they did across all of 2025-26. Even if you narrow the lens to the current winning streak, which began on Oct. 26, that remains true.
So far, it hasn’t derailed them because they’ve kept winning. But that cushion matters a lot less now that Curry is expected to be out for what seems to be close to a month.
What made Golden State’s winning streak stand out was how often the team didn’t need Curry to rescue it. Yes, he had his huge nights.
He scored 41 in the overtime win over the Orlando Magic, then followed that with 44 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, a performance that helped the Warriors get past one of the West’s best defensive teams. But there were also games when Curry felt like a luxury instead of a necessity, which is a welcome shift for a group that has leaned on him too heavily over the past two seasons.
That gives the Warriors a path to survive this stretch. Lendeborg and Brandin Podziemski have become real offensive pieces, and there is enough structure in place to keep the team afloat for a month without Curry. It won’t always be pretty, but it is manageable.
What isn’t manageable is a steady stream of giveaways. Lendeborg is averaging 3.3 turnovers to go with 3.7 assists.
Draymond Green is at 2.9 turnovers despite how effective he’s been as a playmaker in his clarified role. The bench, as a unit, is coughing it up 6.9 times per game, which ranks 21st among reserve groups around the league.
Steve Kerr has already acknowledged that some of last season’s turnover issues came from his own looseness on certain coaching points. That makes this a key stretch for him as well. If the Warriors are going to keep their momentum from slipping while Curry sits, they’ll need sharper execution and cleaner possession management right away.
The schedule won’t make that easy. Golden State is set to face the San Antonio Spurs, New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, and Boston Celtics, and three of those teams are in the top half of the league in average turnovers forced.
If the Warriors can tighten things up without Curry, that would say plenty about where this team can go over the rest of the season. If they can’t, the good vibes could disappear fast.
In Other News...
Jimmy Butler's Rehab Just Raised A New Warriors Question
Jimmy Butlers recovery from a torn ACL has already become one of the more closely watched storylines around Golden State, and his latest step has only added another layer to it. Butler has said he wants to get into a G League game for the Santa Cruz Warriors before he makes his way back to the Warriors lineup, a plan that would give him a live-game test in a lower-pressure setting as he works his way through rehab.
For Golden State, the idea is intriguing because it would offer a clearer bridge between the training room and the NBA floor, but it still depends on medical clearance from the teams staff. Steve Kerr has welcomed the possibility, though it remains unclear whether the Santa Cruz appearance would become an official part of Butlers rehabilitation path, leaving the Warriors with one more question to sort out as his return draws closer. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Trade Need Suddenly Feels Real After Curry Injury
Stephen Currys oblique injury has changed the temperature around Golden State almost overnight, turning a roster conversation into something far more urgent. Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reported that the Warriors are now looking at potential trade targets such as Wendell Carter Jr. and Naz Reid as they try to steady a frontcourt that suddenly looks thinner than expected.
Carter has been performing well this season for the Orlando Magic, and the idea of adding a player with a similar profile to Kristaps Porzingis gives the Warriors a clearer sense of the type of move they may be chasing. For now, though, it remains speculative, with any real path forward depending on negotiations between Golden State and Orlando, and on how aggressively the Warriors decide to respond to Currys absence. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Face A New Trade Problem In Porzingis Pursuit
The NBAs draft lottery reform has quietly changed the trade market, and it may be making life harder for the Warriors as they try to sort through a Kristaps Porzingis pursuit. With the incentive to bottom out reduced, fewer low-performing teams are eager to move veteran pieces, which means the usual pool of sellers is thinner than it once was. For Golden State, that can turn a straightforward search for a deal into a much narrower hunt.
So the Warriors may have to look elsewhere for a workable path, and that likely means teams dealing with financial pressure rather than teams chasing the lottery. The Phoenix Suns and Orlando Magic stand out as possible partners in that kind of framework, but the broader point is clear: this is no longer just about finding a team willing to trade, it is about finding one with the right mix of need and flexibility. [Read more 🡒]