Fansided

Top-10 reasons Golden State Warriors won’t repeat as NBA champions

By Robert Judin

October 27, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates during the third quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Pelicans 111-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
October 27, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates during the third quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Pelicans 111-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
8 of 11
Next
Mar 7, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) works against Denver Nuggets guard Randy Foye (4) during the second half at Pepsi Center. The Rockets won 114-100. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 7, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) works against Denver Nuggets guard Randy Foye (4) during the second half at Pepsi Center. The Rockets won 114-100. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports /

4. James Harden’s revenge

Don’t forget that James Harden received a lot of love last year from the media when it came to the race for the league’s MVP award. Curry won it because he’s a great player and continuously wowed us on a nightly basis, but he also won it because Golden State had the best record.

Harden led the Houston Rockets to 57 wins and a spot as the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. He averaged 27.4 points and seven assists last season for Houston, which had its own problems keeping players healthy. Dwight Howard missed half of the season because of injury. Patrick Beverly missed 26 games. Terrence Jones missed 49 games. It was an epidemic for the Rockets last year.

Maybe, with a stroke of luck, they can stay as healthy as Golden State did last season. If that happens, Harden may be back in contention for an MVP award. He may believe that he should have won it last year anyway. After all, which team would suffer the bigger drop-off without their superstar? Is Golden State still a playoff team without Curry? Is Houston as good as it is without Harden? Many believed the Rockets wouldn’t even make the playoffs without Harden last year, and that’s certainly plausible.

This season could be Harden’s revenge year for not winning the award. Speaking of revenge, don’t forget that Golden State beat Houston in the Western Conference Finals last year 4-1. That probably left a bitter taste for Harden, who will look to get even.

Next: 3. Oklahoma City Thunder

Home/Golden State Warriors