Curry amazed Warriors not favored to win 2016 championship
Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors had a heck of a year.
The Dubs racked up plenty of accolades during the 2014-15 season:
- Curry was voted league MVP and a member of the All-NBA first team.
- Klay Thompson made the All-NBA second team.
- Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut earned All-Defensive first and second team honors, respectively.
- General manager Bob Myers was named Executive of the Year.
Despite these recent accomplishments, the 2015 NBA champions do not enter next season as odds-on favorites to defend their title.
"You have teams that haven't set foot on the floor yet and are heavily favored to kick us off our throne," Curry told CBS Sports' Ken Berger on Wednesday from USA Basketball's minicamp in Las Vegas.
Oddsmaker Bovada currently has the Cleveland Cavaliers as an 11-4 favorite to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy in 2016.
The Warriors are tied for second, with 9-2 odds, with the revamped San Antonio Spurs.
The Spurs improved their roster following a heart-wrenching postseason ousting last season at the hands of the Los Angeles Clippers, most notably acquiring star free agent LaMarcus Aldridge.
Nevertheless, Curry believes his squad's championship experience will enable it to overcome such doubt as it sets its sights on a repeat.
"Obviously there's been a lot of noise, teams retooling and trying to boost their lineups," he said. "We obviously are the champs, and you've got to think that we're gonna be a better team next year with our experiences that we've had, and we're not the favorites."
The Warriors will face the Spurs for the first time next season on Jan. 25, while their highly anticipated Finals rematch with the Cavs is slated for Christmas Day.
Both games will serve as barometers for the reigning champs, who still feel like they have something to prove.