Warriors provide immediate reason for Brandin Podziemski's sudden exit vs. Wizards
The Golden State Warriors have improved to 6-1 after taking care of business against the Washington Wizards at home, 125-112. In the victory, Stephen Curry returned from an ankle injury to score 24 points, while Buddy Hield poured in 20 and Draymond Green scored 18 points while grabbing eight boards. However, Warriors guard Brandin Podziemski left the Wizards game early in the third quarter due to an undisclosed condition and did not return.
"Warriors say that Brandin Podziemski left because he isn't feeling well ," according to Warriors writer Anthony Slater on X, formerly Twitter. "Called out of game early third quarter. Out for the rest of the night."
The Warriors handle business
While Stephen Curry returned from an ankle injury after missing three games, one of the Warriors' key role players Brandin Podziemski was in bad condition and missed the second half against the Wizards.
Still, Golden State didn't seem like it lost a step as they took a comfortable victory over the Wizards, who fell to 2-4. Likewise, Podziemski had entered the game averaging 10.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists, while leading the league with a +94 plus/minus.
However, while he doesn't light up the stat sheet, Podziemski is a valuable part of the Warriors' depth, who decided to go all-in on their 15-man rotation after losing Klay Thompson and failing to trade for Lauri Markkanen or Paul George in the offseason.
Steve Kerr going 12-deep has won them a few games, including the one against the New Orleans Pelicans where unheralded Lindy Waters III scored 21 points in the Warriors' victory. However, this depth also gets its effectivity from Buddy Hield's terrific shooting , including a 28-point scorcher against the same Pelicans.
While it's still early in the season to declare the Warriors a contender, they had stacked up wins by beating teams they were supposed to beat, playing with urgency and energy every night.
Unlike other teams, the Warriors know they need to play with energy and toughness every game since they don't have nearly as much star power as other contenders in the West.
They are in a good spot heading into December, the doldrums of the regular season where some teams go on runs while others go on losing streaks.
If their hot shooting doesn't last into the next year, they'd have won enough games to sit near the top of the standings, which they will need if they want to make a splash in the playoffs.
So far, the Warriors look like serious threats in the West. Can they give Stephen Curry another championship before he rides off into the sunset?
