A lot can change in a decade. Just ask the Warriors.
The 10-Year Challenge has been making the rounds on social media as of late, so it's a fitting time to look back on just how far the Dubs have come in the last 10 years. After all, prior to the current six-year streak of making the playoffs, the Warriors were known far more for their chronic dysfunction than they were for their dominance of the league.
The 2008-09 season marked the last one in which Steph Curry was starring at Davidson, and obviously, Curry's arrival drastically altered the trajectory of the franchise -- in due time.
Before his arrival, well, things were pretty bleak.
The 2008-09 Warriors went 29-53. For comparison, the 2018-19 Warriors are currently 29-14.
The 2008-09 Warriors got started off on the wrong foot -- or ankle -- before the season even began.
Monta Ellis seriously injured his ankle in an offseason moped accident. Then he lied about it to the team. Then the Warriors suspended him for 30 games without pay.
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Ellis didn't make his first appearance of the season until Jan. 23, a game the Warriors would ultimately lose to the Cavaliers on a LeBron James buzzer-beater to drop to 13-31 on the year.
Stephen Jackson was the unquestioned alpha on the team, and led Golden State with an average of 20.1 points per contest in 59 games played. Current Phoenix Suns guard Jamal Crawford ranked second in scoring on that Warriors team with an average of 19.7 points per game.
Andris Biedrins had arguably his best season averaging 11.9 points and 11.2 rebounds, shooting 57.8 percent from the field and 55.1 percent from the free throw line. He never shot better than 32.3 percent from the charity stripe in any future season.
Brandan Wright appeared in 39 games in his sophomore season, before missing the entire next year with a shoulder injury. Two Anthony's -- Randolph and Morrow -- offered the latest reasons for optimism.
The Warriors ultimately lost four of their final five games -- including the last two -- to finish the 2008-09 season with the seventh-worst record in the league at 29-53. The Knicks, who ended up with the eighth-worst record, finished 32-50.
That meant Golden State would be slotted seventh going into the lottery, a spot they maintained into the draft itself.
On June 25, 2009, the Warriors selected a skinny, sweet-shooting guard out of Davidson College with the seventh overall pick of the NBA Draft.
With the eighth overall pick, the Knicks selected power forward Jordan Hill.
10 years created a 🐐 pic.twitter.com/uguKBo5Zmv— NBCSAuthentic (@NBCSAuthentic) January 15, 2019
10 years later, a whole lot has changed.
