An opponent-by-opponent breakdown of the Warriors’ 2017-18 regular season
schedule.
With the release of the 2017-18 NBA regular season schedule yesterday, the
Warriors now know the path they must take to make it back to the playoffs for a
sixth-straight year. Here’s a team-by-team breakdown (in alphabetical order) of
the Warriors’ 2017-18 schedule, complete with some of your favorite GIFs.
Atlanta Home: 3/23 Away: 3/2
Warriors will face the Hawks (and all other Eastern Conference teams) a total of
two times this season, with each team hosting a game on their own home court.
Both meetings will come in a span of 22 days in March. Golden State swept the
season series last year, winning both games by a combined total of 13 points.
Boston Home: 1/27 Away: 11/16
After finishing the regular season as the top seed in the Eastern Conference
last year, the Celtics have their sights set on even loftier goals now after
adding Gordon Hayward as a free agent in the offseason. The Warriors and Celtics
split their season series last year, with each side prevailing on the other’s
home floor.
Brooklyn Home: 3/6 Away: 11/19
The Nets finished dead last in the NBA last season after compiling a record of
20-62, but hope to improve in the year ahead after acquiring players like
DeAngelo Russell and DeMarre Carroll in the offseason. Golden State has won the
last four meetings between the two teams.
Charlotte Home: 12/29 Away: 12/6
The Hornets are hoping to make it back to the playoffs after missing out on the
postseason last year. They’ll face the Warriors twice in a span of 24 days in
December. Golden State has swept the season series in each of the last three
seasons.
Chicago Home: 11/24 Away: 1/17
The last time the Bulls and Warriors faced each other, Jimmy Butler led Chicago
with 22 points in a winning effort. If the Bulls are to repeat that performance,
they’ll have to do so without the aid of Butler, who is now a member of the
Minnesota Timberwolves. The two teams have split the season series in two of the
last three seasons.
Cleveland Home: 12/25 Away: 1/15
They’ve met in the last three NBA Finals, and opposed each other on both
Christmas Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day each of the last two years. It’ll
be three-for-three in the season ahead, when the Warriors and Cavaliers match up
on two of the biggest days of the NBA calendar.
Dallas Home: 12/14, 2/8 Away: 10/23, 1/3
The Mavericks are looking to bounce back after missing the playoffs last season
for just the second time since the turn of the century. Future Hall-of-Famer
Dirk Nowtizki enters what could possibly be his final NBA season, which means
the Warriors-Mavericks matchup on February 8 could represent his final game at
Oracle Arena.
Denver Home: 12/23, 1/8 Away: 11/4, 2/3
Optimism is abound in Denver, after the Nuggets added Paul Millsap in the
offseason. He’ll join Nikola Jokic in forming one of the more potent frontcourts
in the entire league, as the Nuggets look to make it back to the postseason
after missing out on the playoffs each of the last four years. The Nuggets have
earned at least one regular season victory over the Warriors in each of the last
14 seasons.
Detroit Home: 10/29 Away: 12/8
The Warriors swept the season series with the Pistons last year and have
prevailed in 11 of the last 12 meetings between the two teams. Both matchups
between Golden State and Detroit in the season ahead will occur before the
calendar flips to 2018.
Houston Home: 10/17 Away: 1/4, 1/20
Despite finishing with the third-most wins in the NBA last season, the Rockets
could be even better in the season ahead after acquiring Chris Paul from the
Clippers to form one of the most star-studded backcourts of all-time alongside
MVP runner-up James Harden. The Rockets are one of four teams the Warriors will
face only three times during the 2017-18 campaign, and Houston’s only visit to
the Bay Area will come on the very first day of the season when they visit
Oracle Arena for Opening Night.
Indiana Home: 3/27 Away: 4/5
The Pacers will have a new look this season after trading away Paul George to
Oklahoma City, and the Warriors will have to wait quite some time before they
see that look up close and personal. The two sides will have to wait all the way
until March 27th for their first encounter, but will face each other again just
over one week later. Golden State has swept the season series each of the last
two seasons.
L.A. Clippers Home: 1/10, 2/22 Away: 10/30, 1/6
The aforementioned Paul is no longer a member of the Clippers, but that
shouldn’t take much away from what has been one of the better divisional
rivalries over the last several years. The Warriors and Clippers will play a
total of four times in the upcoming regular season, with the first two matchups
taking place at Staples Center. Golden State has prevailed in each of the last
10 meetings between the two teams.
L.A. Lakers Home: 12/22, 3/14 Away: 11/29, 12/18
The Lakers are currently in the midst of their longest playoff drought in
franchise history, but they enter the 2017-18 season with renewed hope and
optimism. Lonzo Ball, the #2 overall pick in the NBA Draft, joins a growing core
of promising young players, and they’ve managed to give the Warriors some
trouble over the last few years, having beaten Golden State once in each of the
last three seasons. The two teams face each other four times in the upcoming
season, with three of those matchups coming in a span of 24 days.
Memphis Home: 12/20, 12/30 Away: 10/21
The Warriors and Grizzlies will play each other just three times in 2017-18, and
all of those games will take place before the New Year. Golden State will make
their only trip to Memphis for their third game of the season, and then round
out the season series with the Grizzlies with two home games at Oracle Arena in
late December.
Miami Home: 11/6 Away: 12/3
If you want to see a Warriors-Heat matchup, don’t miss the early portion of the
season. The Dubs will host the Heat on November 6, and make their only trip to
Miami to round out the season series on December 3. Golden State has won eight
of the last 11 games between the two teams, but it was Miami who prevailed the
last time they met.
Milwaukee Home: 3/29 Away: 1/12
All eyes are on Giannis Antetokounmpo as the Bucks will attempt to secure
consecutive playoff berths for the first time since 2004. Golden State has won
seven of their last eight games against the Bucks, including sweeping the season
series last year. Both games between Golden State and Milwaukee will be national
television broadcasts.
Minnesota Home: 11/8, 1/25 Away: 3/11
Few teams improved as much – on paper, at least – as the Timberwolves this
offseason after they acquired the likes of Jimmy Butler, Jamal Crawford, Taj
Gibson and Jeff Teague through trades and free agency. Of the four teams that
the Warriors will play only three times in the upcoming season, the Timberwolves
join the Grizzlies as the only two opponents that Golden State will play more
home games against than away. The Dubs will host Timberwolves in early November
and late January before closing out the season series in Minnesota in March.
New Orleans Home: 11/25, 4/7 Away: 10/20, 12/4
The Warriors have won 17 of their last 18 games against the Pelicans, and will
look to continue that dominance in the season ahead. Golden State will play
their first road game of the entire season in New Orleans on October 20th before
facing Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins and the Pelicans two additional times
before mid-December. They’ll then have to wait more than four months to finish
off the season series with the Pelicans on April 7, in what will be Golden
State’s final home game of the 2017-18 season.
New York Home: 1/23 Away: 2/26
The Warriors have not lost to the Knicks since Steve Kerr became Head Coach, and
the Dubs will do their best to ensure that trend doesn’t come to an end anytime
soon. Golden State will encounter New York for the first time on January 23,
which will begin a three-game homestand at Oracle Arena. The Warriors will then
make their one and only trip out to the Big Apple to close out the season series
with the Knicks on February 26.
Oklahoma City Home: 2/6, 2/24 Away: 11/22, 4/3
The games between the Warriors and Thunder last season were full of emotion and
excitement, and Paul George’s arrival in Oklahoma City should only add to that.
Russell Westbrook is the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player, meaning that Golden
State and Oklahoma City combine to possess the last four winners of that
prestigious award. The two sides will meet four times in 2017-18, and the
Warriors have won the last seven games between the two teams. All four games of
the season series will be nationally televised.
Orlando Home: 11/13 Away: 12/1
The Warriors have swept the season series with the Magic in each of the last
four seasons, and they’ll attempt to make it five-for-five in the year ahead.
The degree to which the Dubs are successful will be apparent before long, as the
two sides will close out the season series on the first day of December.
Philadelphia Home: 11/11 Away: 11/18
The Warriors have won their last eight games against the 76ers, but had to
outscore Philadelphia 28-14 in the fourth quarter of their most recent matchup
to come away with the victory. Could this be the year the young 76ers take the
next step? Philadelphia selected Markelle Fultz with the first overall pick in
the 2017 NBA Draft, adding him to an already-enviable stable of young talent
that includes Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. Here’s hoping that all the players
involved will be healthy in the early portion of the season, as the two sides
will play both games of the season series on consecutive Saturdays in November.
Phoenix Home: 2/12, 4/1 Away: 3/17, 4/8
Golden State has won 11 consecutive games against the Suns, but won’t encounter
Phoenix until a home game on February 12th, the Dubs second-to-last game before
the All-Star break. The two sides will then meet three more times throughout the
remainder of the regular season, with the last two games occuring in April.
Portland Home: 12/11 Away: 2/14, 3/9
The last time the Warriors saw the Trail Blazers, they were sweeping Portland
out of the first round of the playoffs. Portland will get their first of three
chances at redemption when they make their only trip of the season to Oracle
Arena on December 11. The other two games of the season series will take place
at the Moda Center in Portland on February 14 and March 9.
Sacramento Home: 11/27, 3/16 Away: 2/2, 3/31
The Warriors have won 16 of their last 18 matchups with the Kings, but dropped a
game in Sacramento just last season. The NorCal rivalry will be renewed when
they meet for the first time in 2017-18 at Oracle Arena on November 27th. The
next game between the two teams – in Sacramento on February 2 – will be the only
nationally broadcasted game of the season series.
San Antonio Home: 2/10, 3/8 Away: 11/2, 3/19
On their way to the Championship last season, the Warriors became the first team
in NBA history with three consecutive four-game series sweeps to begin a
postseason. The third and final of those series sweeps came against the San
Antonio Spurs, who finished the 2016-17 regular season with the second-best
record in the NBA. San Antonio was the only team in the league to win the
regular season series against the Warriors last year, which included a 29-point
runaway victory on Opening Night. They’ll play four times during the 2017-18
regular season, with the final two encounters coming in a span of 12 days in
mid-March. All four games in the season series will be nationally televised.
Toronto Home: 10/25 Away: 1/13
Golden State has swept the season series with the Raptors in each of the last
three years, and has won 14 of the last 16 games between the two teams. The
Raptors will make their only trip to the Bay Area for a game at Oracle Arena on
October 25 before closing out the season series and hosting the Dubs in Toronto
on January 13.
Utah Home: 12/27, 3/25 Away: 1/30, 4/10
Along with Portland and San Antonio, the Jazz were the third team to get swept
by the Warriors during the 2016-17 playoffs. Gordon Hayward has since departed
for Boston in free agency, but Utah hopes some of that playmaking void will be
filled by Ricky Rubio, whom they acquired in a trade with Minnesota. Golden
State will get their first taste of the new-look Jazz when Utah visits Oracle
Arena on December 27th. The two sides will close out the four-game season series
on April 10 in Salt Lake City, in what will be the Warriors’ final game of the
regular season.
Washington Home: 10/27 Away: 2/28
The Wizards and Warriors split the season series in 2016-17, with each side
prevailing on their own home floor. Washington will make their only visit to
Oracle Arena on October 27, while the Warriors will return the favor and close
out the season series in the nation’s captial on February 28.
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