It's Halloween. We're not only thinking about pucks and sticks, but ghouls and ghosts. So for this October finale edition of the ESPN NHL Power Rankings, we're assigning every team its corresponding movie monster (or, in some cases, monster movie).

Warning: Don't read this spooky list alone ...

How we rank: The ESPN hockey editorial staff submits polls ranking teams 1-31, and those results are tabulated to the list featured here. Teams are rated through Tuesday night's games, taking into account overall record, recent success and other factors such as injuries. The previous ranking for each team is their spot in last week's edition.

1. Boston Bruins

Previous ranking: 2

"The Thing." The most frightening creature in the universe, because it can adapt to anything. The Bruins can defend better than almost anyone, with Patrice Bergeron, that defense and an elite goalie tandem. They can score at will, too, with burgeoning superstar David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand. Shoot at them. Rough them up. Hit them with a blow torch. It doesn't matter. If you're both on the ice, only one of you is surviving.

2. Washington Capitals

Previous ranking: 3

Godzilla. Doesn't exactly have a large repertoire of moves -- smashing buildings and atomic breath are the horror movie equivalent of waiting for Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Evgeny Kuznetsov or John Carlson to make a play -- but can level an entire city when it all comes together.

3. Colorado Avalanche

Previous ranking: 1

Sadako from "The Ring." Try what you might to defend against it, once you see them in action, you know you're done for.

4. Carolina Hurricanes

Previous ranking: 5

Blair Witch. Reinventing how to create a frighteningly successful, fiscally responsible monster before our very eyes.

5. Buffalo Sabres

Previous ranking: 4

Pennywise the Dancing Clown. About every two decades, they return to terrorize the Stanley Cup Final. (Ironically, they're also in the Losers' Club.)

6. Nashville Predators

Previous ranking: 9

Leatherface. At 4.00 goals per game to lead the NHL after 12 contests, you do not want to run into this buzzsaw.

7. Vegas Golden Knights

Previous ranking: 6

Medusa. Where turning to (Mark) Stone is the best thing you can do this season. (Outside of turning to Flower, that is.)

8. Toronto Maple Leafs

Previous ranking: 7

Rage Zombies from "28 Days Later." Much like the plasma-obsessed undead sprinters, the Leafs are all offense (3.50 goals per game, seventh best in the NHL) and no defense (3.38, ninth worst in the NHL).

9. Edmonton Oilers

Previous ranking: 8

Regan from "The Exorcist." Having your head spin around while you uncontrollably spew both green goo and obscenities is basically the reaction of every NHL defenseman while trying to stop Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

10. Pittsburgh Penguins

Previous ranking: 12

The Xenomorph from "Alien." Just when you think the threat is over, they burst out of your chest and the terror starts anew.

11. New York Islanders

Previous ranking: 19

Stephen King's "Carrie." Demeaned, disrespected, ignored and abused by those sneering peers who look down on them. Hey, why are the doors of the Nassau Coliseum locking on their own?

12. Vancouver Canucks

Previous ranking: 14

The Slender Man. Or as he's commonly known among his NHL critics, Elias Pettersson.

13. St. Louis Blues

Previous ranking: 10

"The Cabin In The Woods." Based on last season, the Blues are forever a reminder that something middling can become absolutely awesome when the twist hits.

14. Tampa Bay Lightning

Previous ranking: 11

"Cloverfield." When there's a ton of hype and on paper it should be frightening, and then you can't quite figure out why it isn't.

15. Anaheim Ducks

Previous ranking: 16

Dracula. Will suck the life out of you before celebrating another victory. One of the best defensive teams in the NHL, two seasons running.

16. Arizona Coyotes

Previous ranking: 21

The Babadook. We all understand that it's quite scary, but who do you know that's actually watched it?

17. Calgary Flames

Previous ranking: 13

Freddy Krueger. Their offense can slice through opponents like a glove made of knives. Also, the perfect proxy for Matthew Tkachuk, considering Freddy was one of best trash-talkers in all of horror history.

18. Florida Panthers

Previous ranking: 17

Gremlins. Whatever you do, never, ever feed them after midnight. (Or in the Panthers' case, after regulation, where they're 1-4 in overtime and the shootout.)

19. Montreal Canadiens

Previous ranking: 15

The shark from "Jaws." You should be scared whenever you see the Finns. (OK, mainly Joel Armia this season. Not so much Jesperi Kotkaniemi, yet.)

20. Winnipeg Jets

Previous ranking: 18

The giant worms from "Tremors." Disgustingly scary up front. Not much going on in the back end.

21. Columbus Blue Jackets

Previous ranking: 22

Brundlefly. Look, I'm not saying the team's beloved mascot bears a striking resemblance to the gruesome mutation of Jeff Goldblum's Seth Brundle in "The Fly." OK I guess I am, actually:

Doing some Halloween/NHL research, as one does. Separated at birth, IMO: pic.twitter.com/Ew6xbcZpNn

— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) October 29, 2019

22. Philadelphia Flyers

Previous ranking: 20

Werewolf. On some nights they're ferocious, savage and absolutely frightening. But all too often, they're just unnervingly ordinary.

23. San Jose Sharks

Previous ranking: 23

Jason Voorhees. A guy in a mask mutilates everything in sight. But enough about the Sharks' goaltending.

24. Dallas Stars

Previous ranking: 27

"The Shape" from "Scream." When you're expecting some kind of supernatural monster but it ends up being two dudes from your high school with an electronic voice changer who start stabbing themselves.

25. New York Rangers

Previous ranking: 25

Jordan Peele's "Candyman" reboot. It's about a year away, but the potential for great things is rather apparent.

26. Chicago Blackhawks

Previous ranking: 26

"It Follows." One bad decision, and you're stuck with Brent Seabrook at $6.875 million annually for the rest of your life (or 2024, whatever comes first).

27. Detroit Red Wings

Previous ranking: 25

"Creature from the Black Lagoon." Many years ago, considered to be an undeniable classic that left audiences slack-jawed in amazement. Today, it's considered to be a guy lumbering around in a rubber fish suit.

28. Minnesota Wild

Previous ranking: 30

"The Evil Dead." Seems like everyone is just waiting for that moment where Bruce turns into Ash.

29. Los Angeles Kings

Previous ranking: 28

King Kong. A lumbering behemoth desperately swatting at fast-moving adversaries.

30. New Jersey Devils

Previous ranking: 29

Frankenstein's monster. A collection of parts desperately waiting for some kind of lightning bolt to animate them.

31. Ottawa Senators

Previous ranking: 31

The Troll from "Troll 2." The first "Troll" movie was bad in a bad way, like the Senators last season. "Troll 2" was also bad, in an absolutely entertaining "so bad it's good" way, like the Senators this season.

TAIPEI, Taiwan – Defending champion Nelly Korda and Mi Jung Hur each shot 6-under 66 to share the first-round lead at the Swinging Skirts on Thursday.

Korda, who earned her first LPGA tour victory here last year, had three bogeys but made up for it with seven birdies and an eagle.

Despite strong gusts at Miramar Golf Country Club, 28 players managed to shoot under par.

''It was a tough one out there,'' Korda said. ''The wind was really strong.''

Minjee Lee of Australia, who was the runner-up a year ago, was a stroke off the pace after a 67.

Four more players were another stroke behind – Amy Olson, Caroline Masson, Angel Yin, Su Oh – and six others were three off the lead.

Korda's eagle on the par-4, 15th made the difference.

''I've been so close and it's lipped out a couple of times,'' she said, explaining her 8-iron shot. ''Finally, when it went in it felt really good.''

Hur could have a slight edge in the tournament. Her husband, Kevin Wang, is in the gallery. He doesn't always get to see her play, although he's seen her win tour events in Scotland and Indianapolis. Her parents were also in attendance.

When the South Korean was asked if her husband was a lucky charm, she replied: ''Yes.''

English football club Derby have fired captain Richard Keogh for gross misconduct following an internal disciplinary hearing into a car accident.

The 33-year-old defender suffered a knee injury that has ruled him out for more than a year after he was involved in a car accident with teammates Tom Lawrence and Mason Bennett in September.

Derby, who play in the second-tier Championship, previously fined Lawrence and Bennett six weeks' wages, the maximum allowed contractually.

The pair had initially fled from the scene of the crash, which happened after a team bonding day that ended in a pub. They returned about 45 minutes later and were arrested.

Both players pleaded guilty in court to drunken driving and failing to stop at the scene of an accident. They were ordered to do 180 hours of unpaid work and were disqualified from driving for two years.

Derby said they "will not tolerate any of its players or staff behaving in a manner which puts themselves, their colleagues, and members of the general public at risk of injury or worse, or which brings the club into disrepute."

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has said he and his teammates offered to alter their salaries in order to facilitate Neymar's return to the club this summer.

Neymar left Barca to join Paris Saint-Germain in a world-record €222 million deal in 2017.

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Barcelona and PSG met several times in August to discuss the Brazil forward's return to the Camp Nou but the deal did not materialise.

"What we suggested to the [Barcelona] president [Josep Maria Bartomeu] was that if we had to alter our contracts we would," Pique told Cadena Ser radio. "We knew that there was the issue of [financial] fair play and the relationship with the president has always been very good.

"Instead of getting paid what we had to get paid that year, we would transfer it to the second, third or fourth [year] so that Ney could come in, if that was the problem.

"We all want to go hand-in-hand with the club in the end. If we can help so that the club doesn't have this problem, it wasn't an issue."

Barca captain Lionel Messi said he was disappointed Neymar did not join in the summer and felt his club could have done more to bring the ex-Santos man back.

Neymar, 27, is tied to the French giants until June 2022, but Pique has not given up hope his former teammate will one day return to Barca.

"We already told him at the time [in 2017], 'you are going to a golden prison,' but in football anything can happen," Pique said. "Yes, what is being said is that [if he leaves PSG] he wants to return to Barcelona."

Rahul Dravid has been asked to appear before BCCI ethics officer Justice (retired) DK Jain for the second time, on November 12, over the conflict of interest allegations against him, to provide "further submissions and clarifications". Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association life member Sanjiv Gupta, who had filed the complaint against Dravid, will also be "heard" by Jain.

"Jain wrote to Dravid on Wednesday night, asking him to depose on November 12 in New Delhi. Gupta too will be heard," an unnamed BCCI official was quoted as saying by PTI.

Gupta's complaint against Dravid raised the issue of the former India captain being the National Cricket Academy director while also being a vice-president with India Cements, the company that owns Chennai Super Kings. Dravid had earlier explained that he had taken leave of absence from the India Cements job and was not involved with the Super Kings in any capacity.

Shortly before taking charge as the BCCI president, Sourav Ganguly - who met Dravid yesterday to discuss the road ahead for the NCA - had called conflict of interest a "very serious issue" and wanted the regulations to be looked at afresh.

"Conflict is an issue. Whether you will actually get the best cricketers in the [BCCI] system, I am not sure because they will have other options to avail," Ganguly said on October 14. "Because if they [former players] come into the system and not get to do what is their livelihood, it is very difficult for them to be part of this system and make a difference.

"So that's one issue which really needs to be looked at. Look at all the appointments that have happened in various forms whether it is the NCA or CAC or the appointment of batting coaches, fielding coaches, there has been issue with everything... commentators, IPL. This needs to be sorted as it is another very serious issue in Indian cricket."

Throughout 2019, Gupta has raised complaints with the Committee of Administrators (CoA), which was in charge of overseeing the affairs of the BCCI till recently, questioning the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Ganguly and Dravid, as well as Kapil Dev, Anshuman Gaekwad and Shanta Rangaswamy for various cases of potential conflict of interest.

Before finishing up, in its 11th and final status report to the Supreme Court of India, the CoA said that the allegations, and the "straight-jacketed" interpretation of the rule, was proving to be "counterproductive and disproportionately restrictive" to both current and former players. It said that there had been various instances, which "did not warrant such application".

The CoA had even asked the Supreme Court to let the ethics officer have more "flexibility and discretion" to resolve conflicts in specific cases, rather than be "bound" by a "straight-jacketed formula".

Big picture

Margins of 134 runs and nine wickets (with seven overs to spare) have made the opening two matches of this series horrendously one-sided.

David Warner has filled his boots while Aaron Finch, Steven Smith and Glenn Maxwell, who has now sadly stepped away from the game for a period of time, profited from time in the middle. But Australia's middle order has barely needed to pad up. The bowling has been impressive although has hardly been tested by some insipid Sri Lanka batting.

So it's on to Melbourne for the final match, a place where Sri Lanka have enjoyed some success against Australia in this format with two wins from two matches. They should have strong support, so hopefully those things combined can help rouse them from their slumber, although it may not be enough to bridge the gap - or chasm - that appears to exist between the two teams.

Quite how much Australia are learning is a moot point, but they have certainly looked a slick outfit with the makings of a team that could be formidable on home soil in next year's T20 World Cup. It would be interesting to see how the likes of Ashton Turner, Alex Carey and Ashton Agar respond under some pressure with the bat, but can Sri Lanka get them in that position?

Form guide

(last five completed matches)

Australia WWWWL
Sri Lanka LLWWW

In the spotlight

Billy Stanlake made an excellent return to Australia colours with 2 for 23 on a Gabba pitch that provided him with plenty of bounce. It's not very often you see a short leg in place during a T20I, regardless of how much the opposition is struggling. The question for Australia is how they fit him in when all first-choice players are available - Kane Richardson would seem the most vulnerable.

It might sound harsh just a few weeks after a 3-0 series win in Pakistan, but the whole Sri Lanka team is under the scanner after these two matches. The highest individual score is 27 and they have managed three wickets in total, while conceding 10.63 runs per over. You would hope the only way is up from there.

Team news

Maxwell's withdrawal from the squad means that Ben McDermott is likely to bat at No. 4. The other decision to make is whether to rotate any of the pace bowlers.

Australia (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Steven Smith, 4 Ben McDermott, 5 Ashton Turner, 6 Alex Carey (wk), 7 Ashton Agar, 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Billy Stanlake

Sri Lanka made three changes in the previous match so may well see this as a chance for more mixing and matching given they have been so heavily beaten both times. Kusal Mendis has made scores of 0 and 1 opening the batting.

Sri Lanka (possible) 1 Kusal Mendis, 2 Danushka Gunathilaka, 3 Aviska Fernando, 4 Kusal Perera (wk), 5 Niroshan Dickwella, 6 Dasun Shanaka, 7 Wanindu Hasaranga, 8 Isuru Udana, 9 Lakshan Sandakan, 10 Lasith Malinga (capt), 11 Nuwan Pradeep

Pitch and conditions

The MCG has come under significant scrutiny for its pitches over the last couple of years and there has been extensive work done to try and revilatise them. A T20I will probably not give a full picture of how things will play, but it should be an early indication. Weather-wise, it's been a hot few days in Melbourne and it's expected to touch the low-30s again on Friday.

Stats and Trivia

• Warner needs 63 runs to have the most in a bilateral T20I series - the record is currently held by Colin Munro with 223.

• Sri Lanka's two previous T20Is at the MCG were a two-run victory in 2013 and a last-ball five-wicket win in 2017.

• Australia have one previous 3-0 win a T20I series, against England in 2013-14.

Tasmania 118 for 5 (Wade 44*, Doran 2*, Tremain 2-15) trail Victoria 127 (Maddinson 69, Meredith 2-53) by nine runs

Victoria's first day without Andrew McDonald didn't go according to the outgoing coach's plan, as they were rolled for a mere 127 after being sent in by Tasmania's captain Matthew Wade on a green-tinged Hobart pitch.

Riley Meredith's considerable speed was crucial in removing the captain Peter Handscomb and the Test aspirant Will Pucovski early on, allowing Jackson Bird, Gabe Bell and Alex Pyecroft to take full advantage.

While Meredith went for 53 from seven overs, his early incisions will interest the national selectors, not least for how Pucpvski was successfully targeted with the short ball and compelled to deflect to short leg a delivery that he failed to get over the top of.

Bird, Bell and Pyecroft prospered through more conventional means for swing and seam bowlers at Bellerive Oval, though Matt Short looked unhappy to be given out to a low catch behind by Jake Doran off Bird, seeming to suggest the ball had bounced before reaching the 'keeper's gloves.

Nic Maddinson was again a stand out for Victoria, scuttling along to 68 from just 69 balls as wickets fell around him. Wade, who is all set to retain the batting place he won in the Test side on the Ashes tour, was the backbone of the Tasmanian reply, fighting his way to an unbeaten 44 with help from the recalled George Bailey.

Victoria's pacemen all delivered typically exacting spells alongside Jon Holland's spin bowling, but a pivotal rush of wickets before the close was elusive, allowing Wade and Doran to reset on the second morning.

The South African Cricketers' Association (SACA) has called on Cricket South Africa to launch an independent investigation into the Mzansi Super League 2018 dispute that has resulted in the suspension of three senior CSA staff members, including interim director of cricket Corrie van Zyl.

In a statement issued on Thursday morning, SACA said it was "very surprised" that the three had been suspended, as their own dealings with them had been co-operative. The player body called it "highly unlikely" that CSA chief executive Thabang Moroe would have been unaware of the payment obligations, and said that Moroe had signed the players' commercial rights agreement in November last year. SACA had launched a formal dispute over unpaid commercial rights fees, alleging that CSA had breached an agreement to pay money for use of the players' commercial rights, which includes their images, for the inaugural edition of the MSL.

"We are very surprised that Naasei Appiah, Corrie van Zyl and Clive Eksteen have been suspended in relation to allegations surrounding CSA's non-compliance with the 2018 MSL commercial agreement," Tony Irish, the SACA CEO, said. "SACA didn't deal with Appiah on this issue and in its dealings with Van Zyl and Eksteen over many months they both expressed a strong desire to resolve the payment issue, but it eventually became clear that higher approval to do so was necessary.

"We think it's highly unlikely that CSA's chief executive, Thabang Moroe, would not have been aware of this ongoing issue. He was undoubtedly aware of payment obligations as he had signed the agreement."

If correct, SACA's claims could make life easier for the suspended trio, while pointing the finger at Moroe, with whom they have long had a strained relationship.

In the statement, SACA released a detailed timeline explaining its side as far as the process to have the players' commercial rights fees paid is concerned, including the correspondence it had with CSA staff.

The SACA version of events between October 14 and October 29 is as follows:

October 14: SACA referenced the breach of the 2018 MSL commercial agreement in correspondence sent, inter alia, to Moroe. SACA received no response to this.

October 16: SACA sent a mail to Eksteen, copied to Moroe, stating that if not urgently resolved, SACA would have no alternative but to proceed with a formal notice of dispute relating to the 2018 MSL agreement and also recording that CSA had yet to sign a 2019 MSL commercial agreement to secure the use of player commercial rights for the 2019 MSL.

October 17: Eksteen indicated that CSA was now prepared to resolve the matter. On the same day, SACA sent the necessary settlement agreements to CSA with a deadline to sign by October 21, 2019. This deadline was simply ignored and no response was received.

October 23: SACA gave notice of a formal dispute relating to the 2018 MSL agreement and CSA's failure to make agreed payments.

October 29: The matter was eventually settled and a 2019 MSL commercial agreement was eventually signed. Players were due to do commercial activations to promote the 2019 MSL on 30 October 2019.

While the matter has now been resolved and the monies have been paid, the suspension of the three employees amid allegations of dereliction of duty has prompted SACA to question what it calls a "wide systemic attempt" by CSA to marginalise the player body in the Moroe era.

SACA cited disputes dating back to 2018, when negotiations between CSA and SACA over the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which governs the players' employment contract, dragged on for so long that a new MoU was signed three months after the previous one expired. It also mentioned CSA's failure to engage with SACA on matters relating to the proposed domestic restructure, over which SACA took CSA to court.

Since April this year, SACA has been barred from attending CSA sub-committee meetings, including of the finance and commercial committees, the chief executive's committee, and the cricket committee, which SACA claims is in breach of CSA's own terms of reference.

SACA says it has sought to resolve its issues with CSA on numerous occasions, most recently on August 24 this year, when the parties met to discuss the domestic restructure and SACA's concerns over CSA's finances.

"At the meeting, it was agreed firstly that CSA would conduct an external review of its longer-term financial position and secondly that SACA and CSA would put in place a roadmap and facilitation process to attempt to resolve the relationship issue and the domestic restructure issue by the end of October 2019," the SACA statement read. "As was also agreed, and to ensure the process was committed to in writing, SACA sent a draft roadmap agreement to CSA on 26 August 2019.

"Despite requests made by SACA to CSA for it to respond CSA failed to do so for seven weeks thus rendering the attempted roadmap and facilitation process unworkable and ineffectual. CSA has also failed to act on the agreement to conduct an external review of its finances."

More to follow…

Arizona Cardinals star running back David Johnson is not expected to play Thursday night against the San Francisco 49ers, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The absence of Johnson, who officially is listed as questionable, means that newly acquired Kenyan Drake likely will have a prominent role against the undefeated Niners' top-ranked defense.

The Cardinals, who already are without injured backup Chase Edmonds, listed Johnson as questionable after the former Pro Bowler was limited in Wednesday's practice.

Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury was coy Wednesday when asked about Johnson's chances to play, saying he was "working through it" while acknowledging that Arizona would use a "running back by committee" against the Niners.

The Cardinals' running back depth chart Thursday night will include three players not on the roster at the start of last week: Drake, Zach Zenner and Alfred Morris.

Arizona acquired Drake on Monday from the Miami Dolphins after signing both Zenner and Morris last week. Morris will be active against the Niners, Kingsbury said, after being a healthy scratch against the New Orleans Saints in Week 8.

Drake, who arrived in Arizona at 4 p.m. local time Monday and had a playbook in his hands by 7 p.m., has been forced to learn the Cardinals' scheme on the fly. Kingsbury admitted it's challenging to have a new running back playing with such a short time in the system, but it's up to the Arizona coaching staff to have Drake do only what he can handle and feel comfortable with.

Johnson, 27, has rushed for 300 yards and two touchdowns is seven games this season, his fifth with the Cardinals. He is also Arizona's third-leading receiver with 30 catches for 315 yards and three touchdowns.

ESPN's Josh Weinfuss contributed to this report.

The idea of the Golden State Warriors tanking was unfathomable in June.

They might have lost Klay Thompson to a knee injury and Kevin Durant to a ruptured Achilles tendon, but they were still the Warriors. Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, Steve Kerr, Bob Myers. The championship DNA was still there.

By the end of the summer, though, Durant was in Brooklyn, Iguodala was somewhere between Memphis and purgatory and Livingston had retired. Curry, Green, Kerr and Myers were trying to learn all the new names and faces of the young players who would be joining them at their new home in San Francisco.

Words like "reload" and "reset" were casually tossed around by Warriors players and staffers. Maybe they'd be a 7- or 8-seed in the playoffs, instead of No. 1 or No. 2.

Even when the team began this season by getting blown out by the LA Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunder in its first two games, it still seemed a bit rash to suggest they'd miss the playoffs altogether.

But after Curry went down with a broken bone in his left hand Wednesday night, the Warriors must now consider the possibility not just of missing the playoffs, but of tanking. They're 1-3, currently holding the third-worst net rating in the entire league.

With both Splash Brothers on the injured list for the foreseeable future -- team officials were preparing to be without Curry for a month or two, although an exact timeline won't be established until after he has a CT scan and an MRI -- the quickest way to get back to their former glory might be to bottom out this year.

And it might just happen now, whether they encourage it or not.

Golden State has nine players on its roster 23 years old or younger. The team is very high on several of them, especially D'Angelo Russell, Eric Paschall and Jordan Poole. They'll play a lot with Curry and Thompson out. But if the first four games are any indication, there will be plenty of growing pains along the way.

Warriors owner Joe Lacob scoffed at the mere suggestion of tanking late Wednesday night, and that's admirable.

"It is against every single thing I and we stand for," Lacob said.

"We will fight like hell. Develop our young guys. Learn to win," he continued. "You don't get better by trying to lose. Our entire organization is about winning. And we will win. Some bumps in the road, perhaps. But we will never accept losing."

But the Warriors might no longer have a choice in the matter. They already were in for a tough year with the youth, inexperience and injuries on the roster.

With Curry out for a while and Green already nursing a sore back and elbow, the wheels could fall off quickly -- making the top-20 protection they placed on the first-round pick they owe Brooklyn as part of the Durant-Russell sign-and-trade deal very important.

Their flexibility to improve the roster midseason is already limited by the hard cap that applies after the sign-and-trade move that brought Russell to San Francisco this summer. If the Warriors' hole gets too deep too quickly during Curry's absence, they could decide to rest the already-ailing Green and lean into playing their inexperienced youngsters more.

It would be a staggering change for a franchise that has been to five straight NBA Finals and was hoping to at least put on a good show in its new state-of-the-art arena in San Francisco.

But this happens in sports. The Warriors were flat-out exhausted at the end of last season.

"The most common conversation I had with everybody was that we were just out of words, we were just out of emotion," Myers said at his end-of-the-season news conference. "As a human being, you can only process so much."

He was referring to the devastating injuries to Thompson and Durant in the Finals, as well as the loss to the Toronto Raptors.

But mostly, he was just giving voice to how much a run like this takes out of people.

Before the season opener last Thursday, Warriors assistant coach Bruce Fraser put it like this: "I don't even play; I'm just a coach. But I could feel my body was depleted both physically and mentally."

In many ways, the Warriors are still paying off the debts they took on during their run over the past five seasons.

Reloading would have been more graceful. But now a full reckoning is upon them.