The Golden State Warriors' NBA championship defense starts now. Well, truth be told, it began the second the champagne started drying up from the mid-June celebrations of their return to title land. They largely kept their core in place this offseason, though there were a few adjustments toward the back end of their rotation. Here is the roster for the champions.
The Bottom Tier
13. Ryan Rollins
This summer's No. 44 pick, Rollins tantalizes with his offensive potential, though he wasn't able to show it at summer league, which he was forced to miss due to a foot fracture.
12. Patrick Baldwin Jr.
The 28th pick from the same draft, Baldwin has a sky-high ceiling as a 6'10" three-level scorer, but he needs copious amounts of seasoning to ever approach it.
11. James Wiseman
The shrug emoji feels like an appropriate way to analyze Wiseman to this point. There aren't many 7'1" centers with his level of skill and athleticism, but after following an up-and-down rookie season with a sophomore campaign erased by a knee injury, he's (literally) a massive question mark.
10. Moses Moody
Moody has the game and frame of a three-and-D wing, but he needs more opportunities to show it. Despite being billed as NBA-ready, he never could lock down a permanent rotation role last season, which he finished with just 607 minutes played.
9. JaMychal Green
Green should be an easy addition to this roster, provided his three-point shot bounces back. A career 36.6 percent shooter from deep, he managed just a 26.6 percent connection rate this past season. If he gets back on track, though, he'll give this group a 6'8" shooter who can defend multiple positions.
The Middle Tier
8. Jonathan Kuminga
Kuminga excites more in theory than reality right now, but for a 19-year-old finding his way on an NBA champion, that's perfectly fine. His athleticism jumps off the page, and while his rough edges still need to be ironed out, his flashes of high-level shot-creation and defending are intoxicating.
7. Donte DiVincenzo
If DiVincenzo isn't already on the list of free agency's best bargains, he might sit atop it by season's end. Assuming his ankle issues are behind him, he should hit the ground sprinting in Golden State as a shot-maker, secondary playmaker and pesky perimeter defender.
6. Kevon Looney
Despite lacking great size (6'9", 222 lbs) or athleticism at the center spot, Looney has ingrained himself in the fabric of this franchise with consistency and a willingness to do the dirty work. This past season, his first as a full-time starter, he packed 7.3 rebounds, 6.0 points and 2.0 assists into his 21.1 minutes per night while shooting 57.1 percent from the field.
5. Klay Thompson
It's possible Klay Thompson makes this ranking look low in hindsight, but he couldn't quite meet his lofty standards as a shooter last season (42.9 percent overall, a career-worst 38.5 percent from three). Now, was that rust from having two years erased by injury, or age-related decline by the 32-year-old? Stay tuned.
The Top Tier
4. Jordan Poole
Three seasons into his NBA career, Poole is arguably already the second-best shot-creator on this team. He could be more engaged as a defender and reliable as a shooter (44.8 percent from the field, 36.4 percent from deep), but there are only so many ways to nitpick a role player who just averaged 18.5 points and 4.0 assists.
3. Andrew Wiggins
Wiggins' numbers stalled a bit after his first All-Star selection, but it's hard to overstate his importance to this team. He is the top perimeter defender on the roster, perhaps its most explosive finisher around the basket and a relatively reliable bail-out option in late-clock situations.
2. Draymond Green
Green might be running out of gas as a scorer and shooter, but the value he adds on defense (both as a switchable stopper and an organizer) and as a playmaker remain immense. During the postseason, the Warriors were 8.9 points better per 100 possessions with him than without, per NBA.com.
1. Stephen Curry
Stephen Curry is the reason the Warriors have been so successful during their dynastic run of four world titles in eight years. His shooting range bends opposing defenses beyond their breaking point, and his willingness to share the spotlight helps the role players shine. Golden State outscored opponents by 10.7 points per 100 possessions with him last season and was outscored by 1.4 points per 100 possessions when he sat, per NBA.com.
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