3 biggest pleasant surprises for the Warriors thus far

The Golden State Warriors are easily one of the biggest surprises in the early stages of this 2024-25 season, racing out to an 12-3 start to sit atop the Western Conference standings after Friday night's NBA Cup group play matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Saying goodbye to franchise cornerstone Klay Thompson and letting Chris Paul walk hasn't mattered in the slightest, as Steve Kerr has beautifully utilized his new-look roster, which may honestly be the deepest roster he's ever had.

While Kerr has tinkered with the starting lineup several times already for various reasons, whether due to injuries or just trying to find the right combinations to put on the floor, that hasn't mattered much either, as just about every variation has worked out.

Steph Curry is still Steph Curry, and he's always going to be the leader of this team as long as he's on the roster. But Kerr doesn't need him to be Superman every single night, although he has put on the cape on a couple of occasions. Ask Captain Klay and the Dallas Mavericks how that worked out.

But this team is so much more than Curry these days.

Draymond Green also remains, of course, and we'll talk more on him in a moment. But beyond the two future Hall of Famers, Kerr is getting production from everywhere.

Jonathan Kuminga is having another strong season. And that's after being taken out of the starting lineup. On that same line, Lindy Waters III, who's now the starting shooting guard after De'Anthony Melton's season-ending ACL injury, has been a pleasant surprise.

Trayce Jackson-Davis has continued to improve on both ends of the floor. Moses Moody, who led the Warriors in scoring during their perfect preseason, has upped his perimeter game and is shooting the best he ever has from the three-point line. Brandin Podziemski has had a rough go of it at times but has shown flashes of brilliance. Kevon Looney continues to be a great backup in the frontcourt.

And then, of course, there are the big names we haven't mentioned yet, those being Buddy Hield and Andrew Wiggins, both of whom have played massive roles in getting this Warriors team off to a sizzling start. And that's where we'll kick things off.

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Buddy Hield

lf anyone not named Steph Curry was built for the Warriors' offense, it's Buddy Hield, who has made the second-most three-pointers since he joined the NBA in 2016, trailing only his new teammate.

Hield was a natural fit to be the first off the bench for Kerr, and he's absolutely thriving in this role, averaging 16.5 points per game, second again to only Curry this season. And he's shooting the basketball better than he ever has, making a career-best 45.1% of his attempts from beyond the arc and shooting a career-high 48.3% overall.

The Golden State bench easily leads all reserve units in scoring, averaging 55.0 points per game, and Hield has led the charge.

Andrew Wiggins

Coming off a pair of disappointing campaigns, Andrew Wiggins looks as energized and as focused as he has in quite some time.

He's slashing to the rim with much more authority these days, and his perimeter shooting is far better than what it was a season ago.

In a dozen games thus far, Wiggins is averaging 16.2 points, shooting 47.3 percent from the floor and 39.3 percent from distance, and is adding 4.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. These numbers aren't far off than the ones that earned him a trip to the NBA All-Star Game three years ago.

With such a deep team, the Warriors don't always need him to be a significant scoring threat. But he's stepped on multiple occasions and already has four 20-plus-point games to his credit.

Draymond Green

Draymond Green just continues to amaze, doesn't he?

Now 34 years old, the four-time All-Star looks as aggressive as ever and continues to be a menace on the defensive end of the floor. When Green is the closest defender, opponents are making just 39.7 percent of their field-goal attempts. Of every player who's guarded at least 100 field-goal attempts this season, that's good for the 10th-lowest rate in the NBA.

But he's also contributing on the offensive end when called upon.

He just recently set a new personal record with five straight games of making multiple three-pointers. And along that same line, Green is shooting a career-best 42.9 percent from distance, which ranks third on the team behind only Hield and Curry.

The Warriors are always involved in plenty of trade rumors, but given how this team is flowing and how each individual is playing exactly the role he needs to play, Golden State might be best suited to keep this rolling as is.