The Warriors' title defense season has had its fair share of drama, adversity, and agendas; from Draymond Green punching Jordan Poole in the face during training camp and trading the former 2020 second overall pick James Wiseman to the Pistons, to having an inexcusable road record of 8-29 after beating the lowly Houston Rockets 121-108 at their arena, there’s been plenty of headlines surrounding Golden State.

The win against the Rockets snapped an 11-game road losing streak, improving their overall record to 37-36, and placing them in the sixth seed in the Western Conference. However, the adversity surrounding the organization begs the question: Have specific agendas surrounding the Golden State Warriors derailed their season enough to sink it? 

After winning an unexpected championship, they went into the offseason with a lot of branching situations involving players and front office executives. And those situations have leaked into the current season, affecting their performance on the court. General Manager Bob Myers has no contract once the summer hits, and his future is in jeopardy within the organization. When asked about that future, he stated that he is focusing solely on the present, and the rest would come later.

Draymond Green has a player option for next year in his contract. He has said very publicly that he wants a max contract but has not stated if he wants to return to the team. He can opt in and stay with the Warriors to earn roughly $27 million next season, or opt out and test free agency. There is no current expectation or clarity on his plan, but given his desire for a better contract, the latter could be the more likely.

After getting a significant 4-year extension for a much higher salary than his rookie deal, Jordan Poole wants to show he can be a starter in  the NBA. While trying to improve his brand on the court, he is struggling because he can’t adjust to coming off the bench as a role player. Klay Thompson started off the season struggling because wants to show critics that he is the same player after coming off two major leg injuries, and while he has been an ultra-reliable 1st option in Stephen Curry’s absences for the second half, there are some key moments where he’ll force a shot that the team doesn’t need him to take.

The different agendas surrounding Golden State have hindered their performance on the court.  Instead of being wholly focused on winning, their production and mentality in tight games where the crowd can’t get them motivated shows they’re just not that locked in on winning. 

Through 73 games, the Dubs have a 3-6 record in games decided by 3 points, a 14-18 record against teams above .500, and are 2-3 against teams with a below .500 record in overtime games this season. The defending  champions have looked disinterested and unfocused, which again showed against an inexperienced Houston squad where the result was a lot closer than it should’ve been.  

Even the team's heartbeat in Draymond Green stated they were unfocused in the first half against the  Rockets. In his post-game press conference last night, Green said their focus in the first half was less-than-acceptable: 

"Our focus level was pathetic at to start of the game. We were careless with the ball." Green stated, "Coach challenged us at the half and we were able to lock in." 

The unserious effort against the Rockets resulted in 14 turnovers in the first half, and is just another example where the players were not fully focused on the game and were possibly distracted by off-court issues while on the court.

Yet with all the agendas surrounding this team, they are playing better as of late on the road, and their superstar Steph believes they still have room to improve. In his post-game press conference last night, Curry said he knows that they still need to improve as a team to make their run:

"We still have to play better. No one is celebrating. It's a matter of learning lessons in wins, hopefully, and getting ready for a big game on Wednesday." 

If Golden State wants to be a legitimate title contender, they still have a lot to improve on and off the court. If they can put aside their personal agendas, they will have an excellent opportunity to  make a deep run in the playoffs. It starts Wednesday night in Dallas against the Mavericks, a key game that could be a major difference maker between the final playoff spot, and the dreaded play-in tournament.

With all the drama and non-basketball storylines surrounding the organization, they are still in decent shape heading into the playoffs with a few positive aspects to consider from their highs this season. They are second in the NBA in points per game, 118.3, and have the third-best home winning  percentage in the NBA at .806, only behind the Memphis Grizzlies and Denver Nuggets. Unfortunately, those two teams are potential playoff matchups, and they’ll need to clean up their road issues in order to potentially steal a game from either in a full series.

It is no secret that this regular season has been a disappointment for the reigning defending champions. Still, if they can get healthy before the playoffs, their agenda-riddled streaks could turn into a deep playoff run once the postseason begins.

(Photo credit: Christian Petersen / Getty Images)