The Toronto Raptors not only won the NBA Championship Thursday night in Oakland but they just may have ended the Golden State Warriors’ dynamic run of dominance within the Western Conference and Association as a whole.
Behind one of the great postseasons you’ll ever witness with Kawahi Leonard, the emergence of Fred VanVleet and incredible Game 6 performances from Kyle Lowry and Pascal Siakam the Raptors were able to dethrone the Warriors 114-110 while winning all three road games against the defending NBA Champions. Now it wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing best of seven series’ that you’ll ever see but it’ll certainly go down in the history books as one that’ll change the current NBA landscape and perhaps balance of power within the League.
Now I’m sure the thought out there is that this is going to be some write-up highlighting some dystopian future for the Warriors after a huge amount of success. First I’ll preface that regardless of what you take from any of this, we’re not advocating that Golden State is about to become bottom feeders in the West.
Not in the least bit. Hell they’re still going to be good next year and will make the playoffs. They’re just not going to be great.
Plus it’s not like the Raptors don’t have their own offseason problems or are beginning to embark on some Warriors-like run. There’s plenty of questions surrounding their own roster in 2019-20 and quite frankly they don’t have the pieces in place for the long-term to be the next Warriors.
But none of that matters right now. The Raptors are NBA Champions and we can accept what that means for the rest of the summer and into next season and just see where that ultimately takes them.
As far as the Warriors go, their fall was almost as spectacular as their rise.
Despite the loss, you really cannot fail to appreciate the guts and will this team had in the face of utter defeat. Kevin Durant coming back from a calf strain only to be vanquished by a desire to get at least one more from this squad and perhaps an effort to avoid the toxic nature of the media and fan landscape. The same could be said for Klay Thompson who succumb to an ACL tear in Game 6 but tried to convince Steve Kerr that all he needed was a ‘two minute rest’ to come back from an injury that’ll ultimately keep him out most if not all of next season.
If anything what the Warriors taught the rest of the NBA (or had to remind them of) is that winning teams or dynasties for that matter aren’t bought. For as much as the Association wanted to adopt the notion of the only way to win is by purchasing a super team, you cannot help but revel in the giant middle finger the Warriors flashed when they constructed their run by smart drafting (Draymond, Klay, Steph Curry), hiring the right coach and signing the right free agents to bring everything together. And yes technically in the end their team was ‘super’ but you can’t say that Durant or DeMarcus Cousins were coming to town without the success they were able to obtain by the homegrown talent.
And as far as next season goes, who knows what’s in store for the Warriors.
Regardless of the injury, Durant seemed like he was gone and on his way to New York. Klay’s situation and mentality may be somewhat different but he’s going to want to get paid at some point which he deserves. And so does KD, especially after giving Golden State discounts the past few seasons in order to preserve the core of the team. Likewise I can’t see Golden State bringing DeMarcus Cousins back as injuries derailed him from truly making an impact on the starting rotation. Not mention is Cousins worth bringing back without Durant and/or Thompson even in Golden State? Perhaps but I’m sure Boogie Cousins is of least priority this offseason.
Furthermore, will the Warriors be able to get those discounts based on past success? It’s hard to say, eventually you have to suspect again players are going to want to eventually get paid. Plus there’s no telling out there if the general feeling amongst the impending FA’s is whether or not the Warriors will return to winning NBA titles anytime soon. If they believe that’s the case then discounts is something we may see. But the landscape in the west is about to get more level, especially if the Lakers are able to swing a deal for Anthony Davis or Kawahi Leonard were somehow able to land with an in conference team.
Either way, Durant and Thompson won’t be available to the Warriors next season or anyone for that matter. Likewise, if in some strange world Golden State was able to bring them back they would still need to find a way to pay players who were actually able to play.
In the end though lets just enjoy what the Warriors were able to accomplish, the lessons they taught the NBA and their place in the history books.