The Golden State Warriors came up short in the 2026 play-in tournament, falling 96-111 to the Phoenix Suns in an eighth-seed deciding game. In the previous game, the Warriors sparked some buzz by winning a 126-121 thriller vs the Los Angeles Clippers. Fans were able to witness vintage Warriors basketball, with Steph Curry knocking down triple after triple in the second half and Draymond Green locking up Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard in crunchtime. All of that was short lived after the higher seeded Suns took care of business at home two days later. The team has now missed the playoffs in two of the last three seasons.
The 2026 season was plagued by injuries, with Curry missing two months due to a knee injury, Jimmy Butler tearing his ACL in February and Moses Moody tearing his left patellar tendon in March. This led to the Warriors finishing the season as the 10th seed, with a 37-45 record.
After every Warriors season comes the same question: Should they run it back? During the final minute of the game vs the Suns, Head Coach Steve Kerr huddled with Curry and Green, saying, “I don’t know what’s going to happen next, but I love you guys to death. Thank you.” The core three have been together for 12 years now, but with contract discussions coming up, anything is on the table heading into next season.
With factors like the primary core’s age, salary flexibility, depth, coaching, injuries and how the team matches up with the conferences’ powerhouses, the front office, coaches and players have a lot to consider over the next couple of weeks and for the rest of the off season.
As a fan though, I feel like the decision is quite easy: The Warriors should run it back. It all comes down to one reason, and that’s Curry. When you have an arguably top 10 player of all time on your roster, who was the lead focal point of a dynasty that won four championships in less than a decade, who continues to stay in the highest level of shape to compete despite being 38-years-old, it would be disrespectful and a complete disservice to hit the reset button and give up on the greatest player in your franchises’ history. With how much Curry has done for the Warriors, this is a situation where the Warriors have to ride it out with him for the rest of his career, even if they will never be the favorites to win it all again.
It also makes sense on the business side of things, as Curry is the reason why Chase Center sells out every game and why the Warriors are seen as a prestige organization. According to Forbes in 2025, the Warriors are the highest valued team in the league, estimated at $11 billion. You’re telling me these billionaire owners wouldn’t try to squeeze out all the money they can in the latter part of Curry’s career?
The most important thing that has to occur in the off season is signing Curry to a contract extension. The all-time leader in three pointers has one more year left on his contract. During the post game conference in the loss vs the Suns, when asked how many more years he can play, Curry said, “Multiple for sure. That’s more than one? Yes, that’s perfect.” A follow up question asked if he’s willing to sign an extension with Curry answering, “For sure, but none of those conversations have happened, so it’ll be a busy summer for the Warriors.”
Locking in Curry for the next couple of years will show that the team is still looking to compete. If that happens, there’s a better chance of Kerr and Green staying. It’s still a tough situation for Coach Kerr, since this was the final year of his contract, and it’s up to the Warriors front office if they want to bring him back. From what is known though, according to ESPN, the Warriors are currently planning to discuss a contract extension with Curry, so that is the starting point.
Another obstacle they’ll have to decide is whether to bring back Kristaps Porzingis. The Latvian big man was acquired from Atlanta by trading away Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield and has played well in games he’s played in, averaging 16.1 points per game in 15 games. He will most likely have to take a pay cut to stay on the team. The problem is he’s hardly ever healthy, only playing more than 50 games in only five of 10 seasons played.
The Warriors have done the impossible though in previous years, as in their 2022 championship run, Otto Porter, who was an integral part of the team, managed to play 63 games and 19 games in the playoffs. At the time of signing, Porter was known as an injury prone player who played a combined 57 games in the previous three seasons. If the Warriors resign and get a healthy Porzingis, his ability to space the floor as a center is a very valuable skill to have on the team.
In addition to talking about injuries, one silver lining of the Butler injury was the improvement of younger players on the team, such as the emergence of Brazilian forward Gui Santos, who has averaged 15.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists since the all-star break. Guard Brandin Podziemski has also improved, averaging a career high 13.8 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. With Butler back, you’ll not only have a secondary scorer, playmaker and leader, but also improved depth.
I believe that as long as the Warriors have Steph Curry on their roster, and have a relatively healthy season from all their players, they will always have a fighter’s chance when it comes to the postseason. Looking at their championship year in 2022, the Warriors weren’t even favorites to win the chip, but with a favorable path to the finals, a bit of luck and the greatness of Steph Curry, the Warriors were able to obtain their seventh ever championship trophy.
My only wish is to see a healthy Warriors squad at least once, just to see how far they can make it. Last year, in the 2025 playoffs, the Warriors were a healthy Curry away from making it to the Western Conference Finals, losing to the Timberwolves in the second round after Curry strained his hamstring in game one. Obviously the Warriors don’t match up well against the OKC Thunder or San Antonio Spurs, but as everyone knows, one injury can alter the chances in a series. Give us a healthy Warriors squad, and we’ll live with the results.
