Warriors schedule highlights: Kevin Durant’s return, most critical stretch
The Warriors announced the first half of their 2020-21 season schedule Friday, with the second half of the schedule expected to be released near the All-Star break in March. Here are some takeaways from the first 37 games of Golden State’s slate.
No relief early
With four road games to start the season, the Warriors won’t play at Chase Center until New Year’s Day, and their first two games are against Eastern Conference contenders in the Brooklyn Nets (tipping the season on Dec. 22) and Milwaukee Bucks (Dec. 25). More, 10 of their first 14 games are against teams that made the playoffs last season, highlighted by a nationally televised matchup with the Lakers in Los Angeles on Jan. 18. Fortunately for them, they’ll return to San Francisco after the four-game trip for a seven-game homestand that features mini-series against the Portland Trail Blazers (Jan. 1 and 3) and Los Angeles Clippers (Jan. 7 and 8).
After a nine-month break between last season and this, the Warriors won’t have time to shake off the rust. Right away, a young Warriors team will have a sense of where they stack up in the NBA and a chance to build some much-needed confidence.
National demand for more Warriors
Despite Klay Thompson expected to miss his second straight season with an Achilles tear, Stephen Curry and his new-look supporting cast will be featured on national television in 14 of their first 37 games (plus five more on NBATV), starting with the first game of opening night and a marquee matchup on Christmas Day.
They’ll also be part of the NBA’s Martin Luther King Day showcase with a game against the defending-champion Lakers (Jan. 18) on TNT. Also part of their nationally-televised lineup is a prime time matchup against the Nets, marking Kevin Durant’s return to the Bay Area, on Feb. 13 on ABC.
Back-to-backs
The Warriors will play on consecutive nights seven times as the NBA tries to fit 37 games into 71 days. That’s one more back-to-back game than they had in the first half of last season, and ranks in the middle of the rest of the NBA this season. Also worth noting is that only the Raptors (playing home games in Tampa Bay this season) will travel more miles in the season’s first half than the Warriors.
Critical stretch
Though the opponents may not be as daunting as the as the crunch against contenders to start the season, the Warriors shouldn’t overlook the end of its first-half schedule when they play a pair of back-to-back road games on the East coast. After playing the Magic in Orlando on Feb. 19, the Warriors will travel to Charlotte to face the Hornets on Feb. 20. They then play the Knicks in New York on Feb. 23, followed by the Pacers in Indiana on Feb. 24.
Soon after, they’ll wrap up the first half with prime-time games against the Lakers in Los Angeles (Feb. 28, ESPN) and the Trail Blazers in Portland (March 3, ESPN). This will be a chance for the Warriors to enter the revised All-Star break with confidence, or questions.
Featured mini-series
Aside from playing the Trail Blazers, Clippers, Mavericks and Spurs in two-game series, the Warriors will also see the Minnesota Timberwolves twice in three days (Jan. 25 and 27) at Chase Center.
Warriors fans will want to keep their eye on the Timberwolves this season, as they owe Golden State a top-three protected first-round pick in a vaunted 2021 draft. If that picks falls in the lottery, the Warriors could have a chance to draft highly-touted prospects such as Kentucky’s B.J. Boston, Stanford’s Ziaire Williams, G League Ignite’s Jalen Green or Jonathan Kuminga and Duke’s Jalen Johnson.