As the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors beat each other up in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Golden State Warriors, the two-time defending NBA champions, are enjoying an extended break as they wait and see who they will play in the NBA Finals, which start May 30. After sweeping the Portland Trail Blazers out of the Western Conference Finals, the Warriors get to rest and get a little healthier before they make their fifth straight finals appearance. For the rest of us, we get to dissect everything off the court surrounding this team, and it has made for some interesting conversation across the airways. Before we continue the dive, keep in mind I believe all of this is comical, and the potential for this to become hilarious is super high.
Let’s start with naming the characters in the soap opera, and at the same time, catch things up to the current point. Golden State was in a hotly-contested series with the Houston Rockets. In Game 5, with the series tied at two games apiece, forward Kevin Durant goes down with an injury (diagnosed as a calf strain, although it looked worse when it happened) in the third quarter. Most people thought losing the reigning NBA Finals MVP would spell doom for the Warriors, but it has proven to be the opposite. Golden State would win Game 5, then go to Houston and eliminate the Rockets in Game 6. Afterwards came the sweep of the Blazers in the conference finals. In other words, the Warriors haven’t lost since Durant went down, and the team looked like the one before he came there, yes, the one who won the title in 2015 and won an NBA record 73 games the year after.
Through this improbable run, we have been reminded about the greatness of the splash brothers, guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson (as if we needed it), the versatility of Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala and a bench that has people thinking the motto “Strength in Numbers” is still alive and well. Curry, in particular, has been on a tear since Durant went down. Going back to Game 6 of the Rockets series, he has scored 33 points or more in every game since, topping off the stretch with a triple-double in the close-out of Portland, where he had 37 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. Green also had a triple-double in the last game the Warriors played.
The recent run has media outlets everywhere asking questions about whether or not Golden State even needs Durant to win what would be their third straight title going forward. Numbers would tell you no, especially the record of 34-4 for the team when Curry plays and Durant doesn’t (since Durant was signed by the Warriors in the summer of 2016). All of this conversation is apparently getting the attention of the probable free agent to be, because he is being his normal sensitive self and clapping back on all of his doubters through Twitter, among other social media outlets. One of the people who Durant was going back and forth with is Fox Sports analyst Chris Broussard, who basically said in so many words the worst nightmare is becoming a reality for KD (more on that in a minute). Seeing how thin-skinned Durant makes me shake my head, but hey, at least he isn’t creating fake accounts to shake the “haters” off this time.
Looking at things objectively, it would be hard to believe a team could be better without the services of a man who many would say is the best basketball player in the world. Having said that, one could see where that opinion is not far-fetched. The ball moves, and everyone is involved in the offense. As great as KD is, he is primarily an isolation player, and he has to have the ball in his hands to make his biggest impact on a game. As a team, it’s easy to fall in love with a player who can score in bunches, but it can make it easier for a team to defend them. Back to that worse nightmare comment from Broussard. My translation is if Golden State wins the title without Durant, the temperature, if it can go any higher, would really go up in terms of the team needing him at all. We can hear the critics now, saying how weak it was joining a team he couldn’t beat as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. The critics will also say it’s proven KD is a luxury to the Warriors, not a necessity. All he did was make an already great team even better. This is what has been coming towards KD, and will reach a higher pitch if another trophy comes back to the Bay Area. I will be interested in the result, but for now, I’ll just sit back and laugh at Durant’s sensitivity on full display.
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