Suddenly the 5th seed is in play

Maybe they can go higher than we thought.

It’s been a fruitful second half of the season for the Golden State Warriors. Save for a disappointing loss on Saturday when Jimmy Butler III couldn’t suit up, the Dubs have been rolling. They’ve won six of seven games since the All-Star break, and just as importantly, their opponents have been struggling.

When the All-Star festivities kicked off in San Francisco, the Warriors were clinging to the 10th seed in the West, narrowly ahead of the Phoenix Suns. Since then, they jumped the Sacramento Kings, then leapfrogged the Dallas Mavericks, then snuck past the Minnesota Timberwolves, and, finally, zoomed around the LA Clippers.

Just like that, the Warriors find themselves sitting in the sixth seed in the Western Conference, and currently in position to avoid the play-in tournament. That was their stated goal all along, so with 20 games left ... is it time to aim higher?

The fifth seed initially seemed a little unattainable. It was so far away from where the Warriors stood, and the team that occupied that spot at the break — the Los Angeles Lakers — looked primed for a second-half run. The Lakers, like the Warriors, have indeed gone on that run, and have flown all the way up to the second seed. But things haven’t been so nice for the teams they passed. And suddenly the fifth seed — currently held by the Houston Rockets — seems within reach for the Warriors.

It’s only Wednesday, but the Warriors have already gained two games on the Rockets this week. While the Dubs were winning a road back-to-back against the Charlotte Hornets and New York Knicks on Monday and Tuesday, the Rockets were losing their own road back-to-back against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers. The Rockets have now lost three in a row, and 11 of their last 16 games. Their lead over the Warriors is just three games, and Golden State has already secured the tiebreaker between the two teams; in other words, it’s well within the Warriors reach, even if it won’t be easy.

What if Golden State wants to get really greedy, though? Could they slide all the way up to the fourth seed?

That would be harder, but it’s not out of the question. That spot is held by the Memphis Grizzlies, who have a four-and-a-half game lead over the Dubs. That’s a very large deficit to overcome, but the Grizzlies are struggling in a big way. Like Houston, OKC has lost three straight games (two of which came against teams well below .500), and they’ve dropped six of their last eight, with their lone two wins in that span coming by just four combined points. They have some very difficult games coming up, so their skid could continue.

For now, though, the Warriors’ focus is on hanging onto the sixth seed, and withstanding any runs that the Clippers or Timberwolves may have. But as we look to the standings, it’s certainly worth keeping an eye on the Rockets and Grizzlies now. If the Dubs keep cooking and other teams keep sliding, then Golden State could keep climbing up the standings.