The Warriors came into the 2026/27 season with several objectives they needed to hit to reach the goals the franchise holds for itself. Coming into Monday’s games, they were fifth in the West with a 7- 3 record, thanks to a seven-game winning streak.

While some of the preseason objectives are naturally incomplete, others have started to bear out, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area, who breaks down how each of his six preseason goals is going.

One of Poole’s keys was to finish the season with a top-10 defensive rating, and while that goal looked far away during Golden State’s several games, it has recently trended in the right direction. Over the last five games, they are sixth in the league in defensive rating, Poole notes, and Draymond Green’s play has been a key part of why they’ve been so successful.

The only troubling part of their profile is the transition defense, as the Warriors are giving up the fourth-most points off of turnovers, ahead of just the Hornets, Bulls, and Clippers. This feeds into Poole’s D grade for another objective: breaking the habit of constantly turning it over.

We have more news and notes from the Warriors:

• Another objective from Poole’s list was for rookie forward Yaxel Lendeborg to make the All-Rookie first team, an objective that he gives an A grade to through 10 games. Not only has the 24-year-old rookie looked like a lock for an All-Rookie spot, but he has been the second-best player on the team for much of the early part of the season, helping keep them afloat through his versatile play on the offensive end.
• Will Richard is not rushing into a decision about how to approach the UCL tear in his thumb that was announced on Sunday, The Athletic’s Nick Friedell reports (via Twitter). Instead, he will meet with doctors over the next couple of days to determine whether he can play through the injury with a splint or if he will need to undergo surgery. Coach Steve Kerr is hoping for a quick turnaround for the young guard, according to Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports (via Twitter). “We’re hopeful he’s able to play through it, and we’ll know more after a few days when the swelling goes down,” Kerr said.
• It was reported on Sunday that the Warriors will continue to search for trade partners for Kristaps Porzingis, who is expected to be open to a buyout should a team trade for him in order to gain some cap relief. In the meantime, the Warriors are withholding payment from Porzingis, a decision the big man has accepted. Despite the losses in earnings, the Latvian center could keep around half of his salary without returning to the team, though that would change if the Warriors made the playoffs, which would continue to cost Porzingis much of the remainder of his salary, Yossi Gozlan explains for The Third Apron (Substack link). Withholding services also carries another penalty, as a player found to be withholding services for 30 days can lose their ability to become a free agent and sign with another team.