SB Nation Reacts: An old Rockets foe sits atop the NBA so far in 2021

When the Golden State Warriors lost Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals, Draymond Green vowed that his team would be back to avenge the loss. Although it took almost a near three seasons before his prediction appeared pragmatic, the Warriors’ start to the 2021-22 season looks as dangerous as their championship teams in 2015, 2017 and 2018 — just ask the Houston Rockets

And through the first 14 games of the season, the Warriors have gained the attention of the league and fans — according to SB Reacts.

The scary part of the Warriors’ dominance to start the year is the reality that Golden State is nowhere near 100 percent healthy — in contrary to their Western Conference counterparts in the Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets.

The return of Klay Thompson will add a usual dynamic to the Warriors, while second-year big-man James Wiseman will bring a fresh enthusiasm on the floor of the Chase Center.

But with Stephen Curry playing at an MVP level while averaging 28.7 points on 45.4 percent shooting from the field, and 40.6 percent from behind the arc, it should come as no surprise that the Warriors sit atop the Western Conference to start the year.

However, the most significant astonishment through the first month of the season has been the play of the Washington Wizards.

After the trade that sent former Rocket Russell Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Montrezl Harrell, Kyle Kuzma and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the Wizards are off to one of their best starts in franchise history with a 10-4 record.

Although 14 games into the season, some may consider the Wizards’ early success a fluke. But the general public believes that the Wizards will be able to sustain their premature success — unlike the Chicago Bulls — who have been just as astonishing to begin the season with the same 10-4 record.

After averaging 30.8 points over the last two seasons, it is absurd to think that the Wizards have found their niche with All-Star guard Bradley Beal scoring 23.3 points per game.

It’s been a total team effort in Washington as Harrell (18.0 ppg), Spencer Dinwiddie (17.0 ppg) and Kuzma (14.5 ppg), have all joined Beal in averaging double-digits in points to start the 2022 campaign.

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