The 2023–24 Golden State Warriors season was the 78th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), their 62nd in the San Francisco Bay Area, and their fifth season at the Chase Center. This was the Warriors' tenth season with Steve Kerr as head coach and the first season since 2011–12 without general manager Bob Myers.[1]
On November 14, against the Minnesota Timberwolves, an altercation broke out early in the game, which started between Klay Thompson and Jaden McDaniels. McDaniels grabbed Thompson, who eventually had his jersey ripped. In the ensuing scuffle, Draymond Green placed Rudy Gobert in a headlock. This resulted in Green, Thompson, and McDaniels all being ejected from the game. Green was suspended for five games and, along with Thompson, Gobert, and McDaniels, was fined for the incident. On December 12, Green struck Jusuf Nurkić in the face in a game against Phoenix Suns, which led to Green being suspended indefinitely the next day.[2] While Green initially considered retirement at one point due to the suspension before being talked out of it by NBA commissioner Adam Silver,[3] he was ultimately reinstated with the team on January 6, 2024, after he completed league-mandated counseling.[4] However, he did not officially make his comeback to play with them until January 15, 2024, against the Memphis Grizzlies, making his suspension officially completed at 16 games.[5]
On January 17, Dejan Milojević, an assistant coach for the Warriors who was also on the team during their most recent championship season at the time, died after suffering a heart attack during a team dinner meeting the previous day in Salt Lake City while preparing for an upcoming game against the Utah Jazz.[6] Due to the sudden death, both the January 17 and 19 games against the Jazz and Dallas Mavericks were postponed and rescheduled for later in the season. Once the Warriors returned to action on January 24 at home against the Atlanta Hawks, they would honor Milojević with a ceremony honoring his legacy and life, as well as displaying "DM" patches on their jerseys and painting "DM" on their court for the remainder of the season.[7]
The Warriors struggled as the season started, as after a 5–1 start they lost 7 of their next 8 games, including a 6-game losing skid and 14–23 in games between December and January, tumbling to a 19–24 record. The month of February saw a resurgence for the Warriors, as they went 11–3 and achieved a 32–27 record by March. Despite initial struggles, however, they ended March and started April going 9–1 in their next ten games and achieved a 44–35 record. On April 4, the Warriors secured their eleventh winning season in twelve seasons. On April 7, after the Warriors beat the Jazz, and the Rockets lost to the Mavericks, they secured a spot in the postseason, with the NBA play-in tournament for the first time since 2021. They improved upon their 44–38 record from last year after a win over the Portland Trail Blazers. Despite this, on April 16, the Warriors were eliminated in the first stage of postseason by the Sacramento Kings in the Play-In Tournament, losing 118–94.
The Warriors only held their first round pick (19th overall) in the 2023 NBA draft.[8] The team traded their second round pick in 2019 as part of a deal to acquire the draft rights of Alen Smailagić.[9] They acquired the 57th pick from the Washington Wizards in exchange for cash considerations.[10]
This was the first regular season where all the NBA teams competed in a mid-season tournament setting due to the implementation of the 2023 NBA In-Season Tournament.[11][12] During the in-season tournament period, the Warriors competed in Group C of the Western Conference, which included the Sacramento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, and San Antonio Spurs.