Through injuries, self-sabotage and a first-round series camouflaged by a slow-down pace, Golden State spent most of the past six months in hibernation. This was, surely, the greatest and least urgent 58-win team in NBA history, a juggernaut in disguise that regularly looked bored when playing at full strength and often seemed lost without Stephen Curry.
The Warriors reintroduced themselves Saturday, destroying the Pelicans 123-101 in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals. They did it without Curry, who remained sidelined with a knee injury, and they didn’t even need Kevin Durant and Draymond Green to play in the fourth quarter after posting 76 points before halftime.