The 1980–81 NBA season was the Warriors 35th season in the NBA and their 18th season in the San Francisco Bay Area.
[1] The Warriors got off to a 12–6 start thanks to their talented cast of rookies and veterans.
Late in the season, they were still in a playoff hunt with a 36–34 record before losing 7 of the next 9 games as the Houston Rockets and the Kansas City Kings got red hot and passed the Warriors.
Golden State still had a chance to qualify for the playoffs on the last day of the season, but a 96–92 loss in Seattle combined with the Kings' 113–104 win vs. Dallas left the Warriors as the odd team out.
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