The Warriors reminded everyone how dominant they are with a blowout against the top team in the West - and they're about to get even better
- The reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors sent a signal to the rest of the league that they are still the team to beat Tuesday night.
- The Warriors blew out the Denver Nuggets - who have the best home record in the NBA - by 31 points on their home floor and set an NBA record with 51 points in the first quarter.
- Golden State is already annihilating the best teams in the league, but they're about to get even better with the addition of DeMarcus Cousins.
- Cousins is set to make his season debut in Golden State's contest against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday.
The Golden State Warriors just put the entire NBA on notice.
After talks of the Nuggets supplanting the reigning NBA champions as the best team in the Western Conference, Golden State traveled to Denver - where the Nuggets boast the best home record in the league - to face the Nikola Jokic-led squad head-on.
The Warriors dropped an NBA-record 51 points in the first quarter and carried a double-digit lead through the rest of the game. When all was said and done, the Splash Brothers - Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson - each scored 31 points en route to a 142-111 blowout that all but cemented their spots as kings of the West.
But that may not even be the best part of Golden State's week.
Four-time All-Star DeMarcus Cousins - who joined an already-stacked Warriors roster this offseason - is expected to make his season and franchise debut in Friday's contest against the Los Angeles Clippers. Cousins tore his left Achilles tendon a year ago while playing in New Orleans, but before the injury, he averaged 25.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 5.4 assists as the Pelicans' center.
Cousins should have a major impact on his new team. Golden State has struggled with chemistry issues throughout the season. A mid-November blowout between Draymond Green and Kevin Durant over the latter's impending free agency resulted in a one-game suspension for Green. Since then, the three-time NBA All-Star has averaged a meager 6.5 points per game, making Cousins' return all the more apt for the Warriors.
Despite his struggles on the court, Green seems pretty amped for Boogie's arrival:
Golden State will host Anthony Davis and the Pelicans Wednesday night before welcoming Cousins into the lineup Friday night, and something tells me he'll fit right in.
- Read more:
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- Golden State Warriors have a travel budget unlike other teams and it makes playing for them like 'a fantasy land'
- Stephen Curry tried James Harden's clearly illegal stepback move, got called for it, then appeared mock Harden
- NBA stars were baffled by referees' obvious missed out of bounds call on Kevin Durant