In lieu of practice March 13, the Warriors met with world-renowned motivational speaker Tony Robbins. Over several hours, while working through team-building exercises and discussion groups, players were repeatedly reminded of a basic reality: To maximize their potential, they must first weather adversity.

Now, with three weeks until the postseason, an injury-depleted team has lost four of six games for the first time in more than a year. Hopes of catching Houston for the Western Conference’s No. 1 seed are slim at best.

It is hardly cause for concern for a group that has long prioritized health over home-court advantage in the playoffs. With 11 regular-season games left, Golden State can ease injured players back into the rotation without fear of dropping in the standings. The third-seeded Trail Blazers trail the Warriors by nine games.

“This iteration of this team, we’ve been together two full years,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. “I think we’ll be fine.”

In recent weeks, as the Rockets steamrolled through their schedule, Golden State sent a clear message to the rest of the league: Even with the No. 1 seed slipping out of reach, it would continue to be cautious with injured players.

Stephen Curry (tweaked right ankle), Klay Thompson (fractured right thumb) and Kevin Durant (fractured rib cartilage) would be playing if it were the playoffs. Instead, those three All-Stars have missed extended time to make sure they’re at full strength for the games that matter.

Curry, who has been sidelined for six games, returned to practice Wednesday and is on track to play Friday night against Atlanta. Thompson and Durant will both probably miss at least another week, but should have several regular-season games to settle into a rhythm before the playoffs. Teammate Draymond Green is day-to-day with a pelvic contusion.

Without some of its best players, Golden State has fallen four games behind Houston for the West’s top seed. Even running the table the rest of the way might not be enough for the Warriors to chase down a Rockets team that is 23-1 since late January. Houston has the tie-breaker over Golden State after winning the two teams’ regular-season series.

However, the absence of household names has brought silver linings. In the playoffs, when many other stars are feeling the fatigue of a long NBA grind, Curry, Thompson and Durant will be well-rested. It also helps Golden State that role players have been forced to shoulder heavier loads in recent weeks.

Two-way-contract player Quinn Cook, thrust into the starting lineup with Curry out, has averaged 24.3 points on 60.4 percent shooting, four assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals over his past three games. After months in and out of the rotation, Kevon Looney has shown in recent weeks that he is a versatile defender capable of logging meaningful postseason minutes.

Nick Young, whose inconsistency has been a source of frustration for Warriors fans, is beginning to resemble the knock-down shooter Golden State had hoped for when it signed him to a mid-level deal last summer. Though the Warriors don’t plan to lean heavily on Cook, Looney or Young in the postseason, they recognize that having those three at their best only makes the team more dynamic.

“It presents challenges,” Green said of playing without multiple All-Stars. “Everything’s just different as far as the game plan, as far as the way the offense goes. That’s a challenge. Saying that, I think it’s also been helpful.”

Golden State is well-schooled on the importance of self-preservation. Motivated by the urge to silence anyone who doubted their surprising run to the 2015 NBA title, the Warriors delivered playoff-level effort throughout the 2015-16 season.

Opening with a record 24 consecutive victories made them the league’s biggest story. Soon enough, the question became whether Golden State could break the 1995-96 Bulls’ regular-season wins record.

The Warriors kept the emphasis on securing the Western Conference’s top seed. By the time the Spurs eventually fell out of contention for that spot, Golden State was staring down a feat many had long considered impossible. Going for 73 wins made sense.

It is unclear whether the Warriors’ commanding regular season cost them a second straight championship. Even with Curry not at full health, they almost held off Cleveland in the Finals.

What can’t be disputed is that Golden State was uncharacteristically human down the stretch. In the regular season, it did not lose back-to-back games. In the playoffs, it went 15-9. The Warriors needed to climb out of a 3-1 hole in the Western Conference finals, something only nine teams had done in playoff series history, to set up a rematch with the Cavaliers.

It all reinforced to Kerr that the regular season is a six-month prelude to the ultimate objective. After Kerr got national attention for resting players last season, Golden State bulldozed through the playoffs with a 16-1 record. Now, as they chase their third NBA title in four years, the Warriors are clinging to Robbins’ go-to axiom that adversity is needed to maximize potential.

“Since I’ve been here, the No. 1 seed hasn’t been mentioned at all,” Cook said. “This team has obviously been through the rigors of the playoffs, so I’m excited to see where they are. We’re getting locked into that.”