Golden State Warriors: Taking a Look Back at the Historic Win Streak Part 1

With the Golden State Warriors win streak coming to an end, we recap all the games that led to the best start in NBA history.

It finally happened. We all knew it would eventually come, but that didn’t make the Golden State Warriors’ first loss of the season any easier to swallow. It came at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks, less than 24 hours after the Warriors notched their 24th straight win to start the season in a double overtime game in Boston against the Celtics. There was something off with the Dubs that night, as they shot less than 20 percent outside of the restricted area. The Bucks deserve credit as well. They played perhaps their best game of the season, and shot nearly 50 percent on their way to a 108-95 win.

Counting the four wins to end last year’s regular season, the Warriors’ streak stopped at 28 straight wins, the second-best winning streak in NBA history. They fell just six wins shy of breaking the record for the longest winning streak in history, a mark held by the 1971-1972 Los Angeles Lakers.

Now that the streak is over, it’s a great time for us to reflect how truly special the start to this 2015-2016 season was. We all witnessed history, and we may never see anything like it again.

10/27/15: New Orleans Pelicans

This was a night that the majority of Warriors’ fans have been waiting for their entire life. Not many fans were cheering on Rick Barry and the 1975 Golden State Warriors when they won the NBA Championship. That made this night all the more special as the players received their championship rings, a final recognition of their hard work before the new season began. The Warriors stingy defense held Anthony Davis to a staggering 20 percent shooting and six rebounds. No one in the world, not even they players, knew what the next month and a half had in store. The streak got off to a great start as the Warriors handled the Pelicans 111-95. Stephen Curry lit up the score board as he poured in 40 points, and dished out seven assists as well.

10/30/15: Houston Rockets

The Warriors faced an early season test in a Western Conference Finals rematch against the Houston Rockets. Many thought the Rockets, after winning just one of the nine meetings last season, would have something to prove. However, the Warriors started showing people that they were going to pick up right where they left off last season. The Warriors won the game 112-92 as the bench came up huge, scoring 46 points to help the Dubs start 2-0.

10/31/15: New Orleans Pelicans

On the second night of a back-to-back, the Pelicans were likely looking for a little revenge on Halloween night. That was anything but the case, as for the second time in a week, the Warriors held Anthony Davis under 50 percent shooting, which would likely be much lower if he had not turned around another slow start. However, the night will only be remembered by one thing: Stephen Curry, the baby-faced assassin, torched the Pelicans for 53 points, one shy of matching his career high from that fateful night in New York three seasons ago. While this may have been his highest point output of the season for Curry, it was just the beginning of him proving to the league that his MVP season was no fluke.

11/2/15: Memphis Grizzlies

In just the first week of the season, the Warriors faced off against all of the Western Conference teams they eliminated last post season. This time around, it was the Grizzlies turn to rehash memories of last May. Curry continued his antics, in one of his more modest lines of the season to this point (30 points, three rebounds, three assists). Let’s put it this way: if Curry would have scored zero points, the Warriors would have won by 20. The Warriors drubbed the Grizzlies by 50 points, with a final score of 119-69. With Andrew Bogut still out following a concussion on opening night, Festus Ezeli began to show that he has taken a huge step forward, creating a small outcry for him to be the starting center upon Bogut’s return. Ezeli’s 10 boards helped lead the Warriors to their fourth straight win.

11/4/15: Los Angeles Clippers

For the first time in the 2015-2016 season the Clippers came to town. If you asked the players about this game, they would say that it was just another game, but we all know Clippers’ coach Doc Rivers comments had the Warriors fired up for this one. They came out of the gates firing, something that has been noticeably lacking in the past few seasons, despite their newfound success. Curry continued his elite level scoring, this time chipping in 31 points. Harrison Barnes continued to impress as he scored 17 points, including two-of-three on three pointers.

11/6/16: Denver Nuggets

The Warriors sixth win of the season came at the expense of the Nuggets, a team who, under former Warriors’ assistant Mike Malone, has seen noticeable improvement. The Nuggets gave the Warriors a tougher time than many thought, and hung in the game an impressive amount of time. In the end, the Warriors pulled away, thanks to their MVP who gave them 34 points and continued to lead the league in scoring. The Warriors ended up winning by a final score of 119-104, improving to 6-0.

11/7/15: Sacramento Kings

The northern California rivalry was renewed once again as the Warriors headed up Interstate 5 to Sleep Train Arena. Getting to 7-0 was no easy feat, as the Kings gave the Warriors their best effort even without DeMarcus Cousins. Curry was held to just three points in the first half, and the team struggled shooting the ball, missing open looks. The second half was better as Curry scored 21 of his 24 in the final 24 minutes of play. The Warriors finished the game shooting 41%. While not pretty by any means, in the NBA a win is a win.

11/9/15: Detroit Pistons

This Pistons are a team that many thought would see improvement this season. With their new draft pick, Stanley Johnson, opening the eyes of many during summer league, it is no surprise that they gave the Warriors a run for their money. Curry struggled from the field for a second straight night and ended the game with only 22 points. However, good teams win even on bad nights and that’s exactly what the Warriors did. The bench had a huge game as Andre Iguodala and Leandro Barbosa combined for 23 points. The Warriors won the game 109-95, notching their eighth straight victory of the season.

11/11/15: Memphis Grizzlies

After getting ran out of Oracle nine days earlier, the Grizzlies looked to avenge their 50-point loss, this time in their own building. Unfortunately for them, that would not be the case. I guess a Grizzly fan could take solace in the fact that they only lost by 16 this time around. The Warriors notched their ninth straight victory to start the season behind Curry’s 28 points, their best start in 55 years when the Franchise called Philadelphia home.

11/12/15: Minnesota Timberwolves

The Warriors traveled to chilly Minneapolis to take on the Timberwolves, whose young core could pose problems for years to come. Ezeli continued to start for Bogut, who was now coming off the bench. Once again, Curry put on a show for the hostile crowd as he dropped 46 points and continued to rain down threes, 52 at this point on the season. Draymond Green, the Warriors starting power forward, led the team in assists, dishing out 12 helpers in the Warriors 129-116 win, giving the Warriors their best start in franchise history at 10-0.

11/14/15: Brooklyn Nets

Many marked the Warriors down for 11-0 before this game tipped. The Nets, who came in at just 1-9 on the season gave the Warriors all they could handle, and just about walked out of Oracle with a win. The Nets were scorching from the field, particularly the one-two punch of Jarrett Jack and Thaddeus Young, who gave the Nets a combined 54 points. The Warriors needed overtime to grab this win, but only because a Nets’ eight-second back court call, Curry magic, an Iguodala do-or-die three, and a Brook Lopez missed game-winning tip happened within the last second of regulation. The Warriors were lucky to even get to the extra period and actually had no business winning this game. The Nets missed multiple chances to hand the Warriors their first loss, but when the final buzzer sounded, the Warriors improved to 11-0.

11/17/15: Toronto Raptors

The Warriors had a few days off before welcoming in the Toronto Raptors, who came in at 7-5. The Warriors debuted their Hardwood Classic yellow “The City” jerseys, complete with a retro court design donning the iconic logo that so many Warriors’ fans adore. Draymond Green was questionable for this game but told the media that the jerseys looked so good, he couldn’t miss out. Curry continued to dazzle as he dropped 37 points, his eighth 30-plus point performance of the year. However, this game was by no means a breeze. The Warriors once again found themselves stumbling upon some late-game luck, as Kyle Lowry went for a lay up with under 20 seconds left even though his team was down three with no timeouts. The Warriors were able to walk out unscathed and their record unblemished, pushing their start to an impressive 12-0.

Talks of reaching the all-time best start to an NBA season (15-0) set by the 1993-1994 Houston Rockets began to circulate. That feat was well within reach, and with the way the Warriors had been playing, it seemed like a forgone conclusion that they would not only match it, but they would beat it.

Next: Looking Back at the Warriors' Historic Streak, Part 2

Stay tuned for part 2 of the recap of the 2015-2016 Golden State Warriors historic start to the season.

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