PORTLAND, Ore. — The Trail Blazers’ pregame hype video was narrated by Bruce Lee’s famous quote, “Be water, my friend.”

Empty your mind, be formless. Formless, like water.

The game didn’t exactly go smoothly, but eventually the tide turned in the Warriors’ direction. In the matchup, Golden State missed its first eight field goal attempts, Draymond Green’s first technical foul of the season, 33 combined turnovers and Portland went 8-for-34 from 3, and it ended with the Warriors coasting through the second half.

Golden State ultimately wore down the Blazers with its up-tempo style and depth. They didn’t pass the toughest of tests, but the Warriors opened their 2024-2025 campaign – and a new phase in their dynastic arc – with a 139-104 win.

Against the Portland Trail Blazers, who are expected to be among the worst teams in the league, the Warriors initially struggled to create separation but took a 12-point lead at halftime and extended it to 29.

Steph Curry (17 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds) fell just short of his franchise-record 11th career triple-double on his franchise-record 16th opening night. Buddy Hield scored a team-high 22 points in 15 minutes and Andrew Wiggins added 20 on 8-for-15 shooting. The Warriors, who have emphasized three-point shooting with volume, made 20 of their 48 3s (41.7%). And their depth, hailed as the club’s greatest strength, showed as they led 70-37 on the bench. Golden State assisted on 38 of 48 field goals made.

In an era without Klay Thompson, and with a variety of new faces both on the court and on the bench, Golden State started Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Draymond Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis in an effort to transition to a more defensive identity.

The opening group fell behind 12-3 as they scored the first eight shots. Curry failed with a few open looks, but concerns about the distance of that combination came to fruition.

Steve Kerr used 11 players in the first quarter alone and then started Moses Moody – the odd man out in the opening period – to start the second quarter. Kerr likes to keep his rotations around ten players, which means Moody is once again in the margins for the time being.

Hield, one of three new veterans on the team, provided a shocker off the bench. He hit four of his first six three-point attempts and recorded 14 points in 10 minutes in the first half. He was part of Golden State’s bench units that picked up the slack from the starters and put the Warriors ahead.

As the Warriors gained momentum, the game sped up. They want to play fast, and they want to increase their volume of 3s, and they achieved both. Still, transition possessions often ended in missed layups or turnovers, and 3s – even open ones – often went awry.

As the game’s sea level rose in the second quarter, it came crashing down at Draymond Green’s feet. Deni Avdija, running out of control on a fast break, tripped Green, whose elbow connected with the Blazers forward around the neck area. The contact was unintentional and Green landed on the hardwood, but Green was called for a foul. After a minute of arguing with both referees, with Kerr shooing Green away from one referee, the power forward received his first technical foul of the year.