The Warriors are headed to the NBA Finals for the sixth time in eight seasons, and while this year’s accomplishments are impressive, Draymond Green insists that the team’s place in history was already secure, writes Ali Thanawalla of NBC Sports Bay Area. Speaking on his latest podcast, Green said everything the Warriors accomplished last decade speaks for itself.
“But by no means does this stamp the dynasty, but no means does this stamp Steph Curry or Klay Thompson or myself or whoever,” Green said. “We been doing this and yes, it’s great to be back in this position. I know people be needing things to talk about but this doesn’t decide or like all of a sudden now people are like ‘Oh ya, this is a dynasty.’ No. Stop it. Been a dynasty.”
There’s more on the Warriors:
- Curry’s three-point shooting has dipped slightly since the playoffs began, but he’s at the height of his career in play-making and defense, contends Jackson Frank of Basketball News. In the postseason, opponents are shooting just 57-of-152 (37.5%) from the field with Curry as the primary defender. He’s also staying out of foul trouble, reaching three fouls in a game only once.
- Matt Issa of Basketball News examines the contributions of Moses Moody, the only rookie who played a significant role in either conference finals. Moody’s versatility on defense and his ability to finish plays have made him an important contributor off the Warriors’ bench.
- Golden State won’t find out its Finals opponent until Sunday night, but Dieter Kurtenbach of The San Jose Mercury News sees a clear advantage in facing the Heat instead of the Celtics. He argues that Boston’s defense is scarier than anything Miami can offer, especially with so many players battling injuries.
- Kent Bazemore expressed regret this week about leaving the Warriors last offseason to sign with the Lakers. Golden State offered a two-year deal and a larger salary, but Bazemore believed he would have a larger role and a better chance to win a ring with L.A. After the Warriors clinched a spot in the Finals on Thursday, Bazemore tweeted, “Congrats to my homies ……. But I’m sick bruh.”
Lakers have sent Kent Bazemore to retirement home
The whole roster is a retirement home.
That’s what happens when you ring chase.
Not necessarily. Everyone in basketball knew it took GSW until the last 20 games of the 2020-21 season to find their rotation(then they went 15-5 to close out the schedule).
They really only played 8 guys during that stretch, being Steph/Dray/Loon/Poole/Wigs/JTA/Lee/Bazemore, with GP2 bench warming at the time. If they lose Bazemore and replace him with Klay, it’s an upgrade. They lose Oubre(out of the rotation even when he returned from injury) but signed Otto Porter, making an addition to their trusted 8 guys. They added Iggy and Bjelicia as well, making it 10 guys they trust. Add in Kuminga, Moody, and the rise of GP2, and suddenly they’re atop in the West come December 2021.
Once they had their rotation figured out, they only added rotation level dudes to it in FA, and that ended up putting them over the top.
If I were a free agent, I’d be looking at teams that were in GSW’s position last year. They had 8 guys,But those 8 guys played every minute for 20+ games prior to the playoffs, meaning if they could add anyone legit, it’d only be an addition. They just needed a little more depth that wasn’t the likes of Paschall or had higher basketball IQ than an Oubre.
Ring chasing worked juuuuust fiiiiine for guys like Richard Jefferson, David West, Zaza, Dwight, etc.
And before this year, betting on a LeBron(+AD) led team hasn’t been bad idea in over a decade. Bron was literally the only dude going to the final’s more often than Steph.
This could be the 2nd time Bazemore gets traded from GS and they win a championship the next year
He didn’t get traded a second time. He left as a free agent.
Keep it 100 he got cut lols!
Bazemore is terrible at evaluating the better situation.
Baze more
Plaze less
Bazemore would be sitting on the bench (if that) with GS as well. He was given a starting role in LA at the beginning of the season and lost it within 2 weeks. Why? Because he was awful! Any playing time he got after that, he was awful. He didn’t have a good game all season. Couldn’t shoot, boneheaded decisions, it was like he forgot how to play. He was suppose to be a starter and totally blew it. The only thing he did well was cheer.
Facts. His best game was vs the Grizzlies where he had 11 pts on 100% shooting in 28 minutes. The rest of the story is that even though the Lakers won that game, Baze had a +/- of -16! I hope for his sake he saved his $2.4 million the Lakers paid him, because he’s done as an NBA player.
Warriors were lucky that he thought his chance of ring chasing with the Lakers was better than with GSW. GPII and Kuminga’s minutes would likely have been affected.
He’s been one of the lowest IQ players in the NBA his entire career. GSW should be laughed at for offering him 2 years, they should have never offered him anything after the absolutely awful season he had there.
“DirtyDra” and “PollutedPoole” …..
Time to answer for your actions.
Heat or Celtics have real toughness. Not fakers who act it out for attention.
“Dirty Smart” is a pathetic flopper.
Real toughness Al? Many said the Nuggets then the Griz then the Mavs had “real toughness”. Define real toughness please and please clarify how “real toughness” scares gsw, because Green, Looney, healthy Payton, healthy Porter, and Curry have matched and exceeded other teams’ toughness. And there’s a guy named Klay who has survive torn knee and torn achilles–2 of the most devastating injures for an athlete–to excel in a series clinching game. I’m pretty confident the Warriors aren’t fearing “real toughness” as much as Knickerbocker Al feels they should.
“Many” said that, Claude? Lol who?
@myaccount2 stop gaslighting/trolling. You know exactly where theres literally a million takes you can reference. Grow up.
Hold up: A KNICKS fan is butting in and speaking up???
Hahahahahahahahahahaha
Yoooo….win ONE ring, then talk about toughness – you would literally never know what watching a tough team looks like over 82+16, like Warriors fans have. You simply cannot claim to know what youre talking about when you have never followed a team who went all the way. Talking out your rear end right here…100% of title winning teams are tough no matter what you think…you dont know ball…
Bazemore was one of Curry boys and was offered 2 yr guarantee contract. It worked out for Warriors because it opened up a roster spot for Otto Porter and/or GP2.
Steph+Dray+Iggy wanted Bazemore+Avery Bradley over GP2…this proves players arent automatically good at NBA team building and player analysis, those are totally separate things to playing…
So many other rookies got all the playing time, publicity, stats, and accolades(all rookie team etc) for regular season. HOWEVER, Kuminga and Moody gets to play in postseason and NBA Finals in their first season and get the best experience, exposure a rookie can have. It’s working out perfectly for Kuminga and Moody! You guys are now the envy of all the rookies and college players!!! Your hard work and patience is all paying off. Congrats!!!
Kent Bazemore is the lowest IQ player in the NBA and this is just funny and deserved. It was also a terrifyingly bad move to offer him 2 years to begin with, GSW actually still got an L here even though he walked – THATS how much of a cancer this guy is to the game.