The Warriors missed on every superstar they pursued this offseason, but ESPN’s Brian Windhorst believes it is far too early to write off the Stephen Curry era.
Golden State explored trades for Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jaylen Brown and LeBron James before all three landed elsewhere, leaving the Warriors with an aging roster and several key injuries.
Windhorst admitted the team’s current outlook is far from championship level.
“They absolutely are not championship contenders right now,” Windhorst said.
After finishing 37-45 and missing the playoffs, Golden State will also begin the season without Jimmy Butler, who is recovering from a torn ACL, while Moses Moody continues rehabbing a major knee injury.
Despite that, Windhorst believes the Warriors still have a chance to rebuild around Curry.
“But Steph Curry has said he wants to play multiple more years, and the Warriors have a lot of draft pick equity, and they have a lot of flexibility financially going forward,” Windhorst said. “So, if you want to write them off, say that they’re done, go ahead and do that.”
He pointed to the 76ers, who unexpectedly added both Brown and James after appearing unlikely to make major moves earlier in the offseason.
“Seven or eight weeks ago, you thought the 76ers were not going to do anything this season, and watch what happened,” Windhorst said. “Let’s just see what happens with Steph Curry over this next 18 months.”
Curry has one year remaining on his contract and will soon become eligible for a reported two-year, $136.7 million extension.
Windhorst suggested Golden State could ask Curry to delay signing it, potentially creating about $90 million in salary cap space next summer if Curry, Draymond Green and Butler all became free agents.
While that strategy carries obvious risks, Windhorst believes the Warriors still have the draft assets and financial flexibility to reshape the roster before Curry’s title window closes.
Warriors have the assets to reshape team around Stephen Curry https://t.co/Dl9M1ezDah pic.twitter.com/SUVRBut5Vu
— New York Post (@nypost) July 28, 2026
