The Warriors are a flawed team but their ceiling is sky high. The West isn't as strong as it was 3-4 years ago but it's still better than the East in terms of playoff teams.
Let's consider the contenders:
Spurs - not enough surrounding Kawhi/Aldridge and Parker and Ginobili are too old to be major contributors. Mills would probably play over Parker anyway.
Blazers - again, Lillard and McCollum aren't enough in a 7 game series. Those guys can steal a few games but not 4. The rest of that team stinks.
Rockets - intriguing because they gave GSW trouble 2 years ago in the Conference Finals but defensively they just don't match up. The Warriors would simply outscore them.
Grizzlies - too slow, not enough scorers. Their style makes the Warriors have to work and they can dictate the tempo of a game but it's only a matter of time before the Warriors offense goes off and the Grizz simply can't keep up
Jazz - now this one is interesting because they haven't even made the playoffs with this core. This should finally be their year however and if they match up, look out. This is a solid ball club and Gobert is a crazy good rim protector. Still, not enough fire power to keep up and they'd likely lose in 5 or 6. The home court advantage with the altitude is a factor as well.
Thunder - this would be the most interesting for obvious reasons. Westbrook is obviously out of this world. Adams is a monster. And Oladipo was a nice addition. But this team desperately lacks outside shooting and they rely far too heavily on Westbrook to carry the load. It would be fun as hell watching Russ take them on but until they add some shooting, they aren't good enough to win the West. They'd surely rough up the Dubs though with all that size. It wouldn't be easy that's for sure.
Finally, the Clippers...
Now the Clippers have come up short time and time again and chances are, they'd lose this series. But they are the only team actually capable of knocking off Golden State. Sure, Chris Paul is great. His defense alone really makes Curry work and on the offensive end, he could pick and roll Curry to death. But the biggest reason the Clippers would even have a shot is Blake Griffin. His game is incredibly dynamic WHEN he is on. When he's out of sorts, it can look ugly. But we're talking about a guy who can handle the ball, is the most athletic player on the court, and who has added a deeper jumpshot with each passing season. A high low game with Blake and Jordan is so difficult to defend, particularly now that the Warriors have lost Bogut and Ezeli. Their biggest flaw is the lack of outside shooting and that should not be understated. It's possible they could add another wing shooter besides Redick.
Forget Warriors/Spurs. Warriors/Clippers is the matchup the NBA needs and the Clippers would have a legitimate chance to knock this Dubs team off.
Let's consider the contenders:
Spurs - not enough surrounding Kawhi/Aldridge and Parker and Ginobili are too old to be major contributors. Mills would probably play over Parker anyway.
Blazers - again, Lillard and McCollum aren't enough in a 7 game series. Those guys can steal a few games but not 4. The rest of that team stinks.
Rockets - intriguing because they gave GSW trouble 2 years ago in the Conference Finals but defensively they just don't match up. The Warriors would simply outscore them.
Grizzlies - too slow, not enough scorers. Their style makes the Warriors have to work and they can dictate the tempo of a game but it's only a matter of time before the Warriors offense goes off and the Grizz simply can't keep up
Jazz - now this one is interesting because they haven't even made the playoffs with this core. This should finally be their year however and if they match up, look out. This is a solid ball club and Gobert is a crazy good rim protector. Still, not enough fire power to keep up and they'd likely lose in 5 or 6. The home court advantage with the altitude is a factor as well.
Thunder - this would be the most interesting for obvious reasons. Westbrook is obviously out of this world. Adams is a monster. And Oladipo was a nice addition. But this team desperately lacks outside shooting and they rely far too heavily on Westbrook to carry the load. It would be fun as hell watching Russ take them on but until they add some shooting, they aren't good enough to win the West. They'd surely rough up the Dubs though with all that size. It wouldn't be easy that's for sure.
Finally, the Clippers...
Now the Clippers have come up short time and time again and chances are, they'd lose this series. But they are the only team actually capable of knocking off Golden State. Sure, Chris Paul is great. His defense alone really makes Curry work and on the offensive end, he could pick and roll Curry to death. But the biggest reason the Clippers would even have a shot is Blake Griffin. His game is incredibly dynamic WHEN he is on. When he's out of sorts, it can look ugly. But we're talking about a guy who can handle the ball, is the most athletic player on the court, and who has added a deeper jumpshot with each passing season. A high low game with Blake and Jordan is so difficult to defend, particularly now that the Warriors have lost Bogut and Ezeli. Their biggest flaw is the lack of outside shooting and that should not be understated. It's possible they could add another wing shooter besides Redick.
Forget Warriors/Spurs. Warriors/Clippers is the matchup the NBA needs and the Clippers would have a legitimate chance to knock this Dubs team off.
