Steph Curry and the Warriors have some unfinished business to take care of as their 2025-26 NBA season tips off Tuesday in Los Angeles.
After Golden State’s preseason finale on Friday night at Chase Center, the team’s star point guard outlined how Opening Night against Luka Dončić and the Los Angeles Lakers can set the tone as the Warriors seek a return to the NBA playoffs.
“It’s the same mission every year,” Curry told reporters after the Warriors’ 106-103 preseason loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. “Last year we accomplished it, and the wheels fell [off] a little bit. But no matter [what], you don’t really want to fast forward too much or panic if it doesn’t go well to begin with, but you want to have intentionality on how you’re trying to start out both ends of the floor, understanding, again, we’re a team that is building on a foundation we had last year, so want to win the first game.”
Curry and Co. will play their first game of the new campaign against a Lakers team without LeBron James, who is out with sciatica to start the season, at Crypto.com Arena. But after Los Angeles added Dončić in February of this year, Curry knows a steep challenge awaits the Warriors as they enter their first full season with their own recent trade-deadline acquisition in Jimmy Butler.
“It’s exciting knowing we’re starting on the road against a team that — wish LeBron was playing — but is lethal with Luka, so a good test to start out, and hopefully we can hit the ground running.”
The Warriors jumped out to a 12-3 record in their first 15 games last season and certainly hope to do so again this year — but instead, keep that momentum going this time as the season progresses. They hit a wall after their hot start in 2024-25, and Butler’s arrival in February rejuvenated the team and helped Golden State reach the postseason before a second-round exit.
Now, Curry, Butler and the rest of the Warriors will look to begin the new season on a high note in just a few days.
