The Golden State Warriors starting lineup was in a state of constant flux during the 2023-24 season. Injuries, absences, slumping players, and a desperate search for something to click led to 11 different players taking the court for the opening tip. Even more wildly, all 11 of those players made at least nine different starts throughout the year. In total, 27 different iterations of a starting five were used across the 82-game season.
Steve Kerr will certainly be looking for a bit more lineup continuity next season. A constantly-rotating cast of players wasn’t the reason for the team’s disappointing season, but it certainly didn’t help matters, either.
But, after flirting with the notion last fall following Chris Paul’s acquisition, the Warriors will fully enter the upcoming season without a set starting lineup. They won’t even have an incumbent starting five.
So who should be the five on the court when the 2024-25 season officially gets underway? And more importantly, who should be the five on the court when the bulk of the year’s games come and go?
Let’s start with an assumption: the starting five will be made out of players that were on this year’s team. Because of the team’s salary situation, you can all but rule out signing a big-name free agent. A big-name trade seems more like wishcasting than anything else. And, barring the Dubs hilariously bucking their league-worst lottery odds, they won’t be drafting high enough to add a plug-and-play rookie.
Which means, to my eyes, there are eight different players in clear contention for a starting spot: Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski, and Trayce Jackson-Davis.
But which five will get the nod? To me, that will be defined by two questions.
What do the Warriors want from a shooting guard?
We know that Curry will be the team’s starting point guard, but the biggest question mark is likely who starts in the backcourt next to him. Assuming the team re-signs Thompson, he’s a logical choice — despite the disdain from fans over Klay, he still finished second on the team in points per game, third in points per 36 minutes, third in three-point percentage, and fourth in the NBA in total threes made. His shot-making, gravity, and chemistry next to Curry make him a logical choice.
Yet there are more than a few reasons why so many fans are ready for the team to look in a different direction. While Thompson is still one of the league’s premier shooters, he’s not the athlete or defensive player that he once was; and isn’t all that close. His streakiness at this point probably plays better off the bench than it does in the starting lineup. And perhaps most importantly, young players seemed to revitalize an aging core that is guaranteed to have Curry and Green starting games for them.
Podziemski electrified early in the season, earning a temporary spot in the starting lineup. The upside of him in the opening five is that he can give you a little bit of everything: point guard passing so Curry can play off-ball; scoring as a shooter and on drives; scrappy defense; and a whole lot of rebounds. The downside is that he’s fairly inconsistent at this stage in his career, and his defense — while impressive — still has holes in it, especially against larger players. Plus, with Chris Paul unlikely to still be on the team next year, Podziemski’s playmaking could be a huge asset for the second unit ... especially when paired with Thompson.
Moody has fewer moments of electricity than either Podziemski or Thompson, but he also has the highest floor. He has a remarkable ability to not make silly mistakes, which is an area that plagued the Dubs this year. He brings energy and three-point shooting every night, and his defense is strong ... while also being able to play up a position or two. He’s probably the least likely of these three to make the All-Star team if inserted into the lineup, but also the least likely of the three to make you write Kerr a strongly-worded letter asking for a rotation change.
Onto the second question...
How big — or small — do the Warriors want to play?
The Warriors began the 2023-24 year with a starting frontcourt of Green and Kevon Looney. They eventually unlocked success by playing smaller, with Green shifting into Looney’s spot at the five, and Kuminga taking over at the four.
Towards the end of the year, strong play from Jackson-Davis — plus the realization that Green would likely wear down playing extended time as a center — led to TJD entering the starting five, and Green shifting back to the four.
Jackson-Davis was so good this year — with a sophom*ore step forward expected — that it’s hard to envision the team wanting to stick him back on the bench. But if small ball feels like move, they certainly have compelling pieces for that option.
But in all likelihood, the question is not if the Warriors want to go big ... it’s how big do they want to go? And that answer might be answered by the upcoming offseason for Kuminga.
To this point, the Warriors have used Kuminga solely as a power forward. But his decent jump shot, strong perimeter defense, and improving playmaking skills definitely give hope that he could slide to small forward at some point. Kerr recently laid out what growth Kuminga would need to show to be able to play the three, and it’s easy to dream about the defense and lobs of a team starting Kuminga next to Green and Jackson-Davis.
But if that’s too big for Golden State, Wiggins and Moody are certainly quality options to have. Moody is large enough to start at the three, and we all know what Wiggins is capable of. The bigger question with Wiggins is probably whether the Dubs would be comfortable benching him ... they seemed quite hesitant to do so during the season, but that tune my shift with a new year.
It’s hard to be too definitive with selections this time of year ... all of these players, especially the young ones, will look different when they show up for training camp than they looked when the season ended.
But if I had to pick a starting five, I’d go with Curry, Moody, Kuminga, Green, and Jackson-Davis. Thompson (if he’s re-signed), Wiggins (if he isn’t traded), and Podziemski can then form one hell of a high-octane bench unit.
Which five would you pick?
