UPDATE: Warriors put Moody, Will Richard into starting lineup

Horford *not* out, Kuminga off the bench

Did Draymond Green just go full “ship out Bynum” mode?

The year was 2007, it was a grainy but decent quality video in a parking lot somewhere. Kobe Bryant was deep in the doldrums, he was under pressure to win and the Lakers were building for the future and had decided to hold on to young unproven Andrew Bynum rather than go all-in on a trade for Jason Kidd.

I’ve been thinking a lot about what it must be like for the Warriors old veterans these days. It’s not just their own team’s decisions, it feels like the league has moved on - not just younger, but better. Evolved.

You see, the timing on that Kobe video isn’t lost on an old guy like me. You know what else happened in 2007? That just so happened to be Kevin Durant’s rookie year.

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GAME DETAILS

WHO: Golden State Warriors (6-6) at San Antonio Spurs (8-2)

WHEN: Tuesday, November 12th, 2025; 5pm PST

WATCH: NBCSBA

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Basketball has always been a time machine for those who’ve watched long enough. One minute you’re marveling at a kid too skinny to survive in the paint, and the next, that same kid has reshaped the geometry of the sport. The cycles move fast - heroes turn into veterans, challengers become the challenged. Watching the Warriors now feels like watching history in real time, the same way that clip of Kobe once captured an era on the edge of transformation.

The NBA is - and always will be - an evolving landscape. Schemes, built on certain types of players; or even a player so unique that young kids start emulating them, trying to improve on what they see. Durant was a 7-foot tall Kobe Bryant. It was an Earth-shattering change in the definition of what’s possible. He played like Kobe, some of the moves were mirror images, but Durant was enormous.

Now fast forward to the year 2025.

The Warriors have gone through multiple restructurings, delivering championships in all three phases of the story. The beginning one before Durant, the pair of main storyline ones within the superteam era, and then the denouement reward at the end of the story - an unlikely but delightful cap to one heck of a run.

But the Warriors aren’t really done yet. They can still contribute at a very high level, and every now and then, this team shows flashes that are dominant enough to prove that the knockout punch is still there, old man knees be damned.

Except, it’s not really coming together. Probably going to get worse, honestly.

This isn’t a matter of hustle. Sure, the turnovers are dumb, but what stood out to me watching last night’s slow but total crumble against the young OKC Thunder was that they just weren’t as good. Wiser? Maaaaybe. But for sure slower, less problematic to deal with on either end of the floor. The Golden State Warriors looked outmatched. And now? Here comes a double serving of Wemby and the Spurs.

Expect some rotation changes tonight, but I’m not all that sure that the Warriors have a motivation problem. This team may well still be good enough, but they’ve got to figure out some puzzle piece fits if they hope to remain relevant.

The bright side of all of this is that the Warriors really do seem to have some options. Even in their losses, they seem to find some combinations that work well enough to keep it interesting. Will Richard continues to demand minutes and guys like Quinten Post¹ and Brandin Podziemski have responded when called on. There’s still a ton of fight left in this squad, and ample talent to deliver.

Just a few little details to figure out, right?

Prediction(s)

Curry goes nuts. Wemby goes nutser.² Warriors win with QP and Moody playing key minutes.

1. thank you, DNHQ reader, for helping keep our quality high

2. nutser → nuts-er (or just “more nuts,” “goes even wilder,” etc.)

• “nutser” isn’t a standard English word.