Lebron James and Dwyane Wade (2012, 2013)
Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd (2011)
Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol (2009, 2010)
Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce (2008)
Tim Duncan and Tony Parker (2007)
Shaq and Dwyane Wade (2006)
Tim Duncan and Tony Parker (2005)
What does this list of 11 future Hall of Famers have in common? Well for one they all won championships! Two, each team had their very own dynamic duo. A Batman and Robin if you will. In some cases you could add another super hero with the likes of the Heat, Spurs and Celtics. I have no name for a third super hero. Are there super hero trios? I may need my son to edit this. #gettingold. I could go on and on with the list of past championship teams but Eight is Enough (a TV show that I happen to really enjoy). I believe you get my point; the NBA is not a single star league just ask Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Garnett (Timberwolves KG), Steph Curry the newest member, and Kevin Love a super star rumored to be on the move this summer. In the NBA it takes a dynamic duo to bring home the Larry O’Brien! (*Side note: Can’t the NBA come up with something better than the Larry O’Brien trophy. The NBA loses some street cred with that name. The “Vince Lombardi” or “Lord Stanley’s Cup” sound much more intimidating and street worthy).
At the end of the 2013 season the Golden State Warriors were onto something, finally! The NBA community tagged them a championship contender. Yes the Warriors had the “We Believe” team in 2007 but even then we knew the team wasn’t built for long term success. The playoff run was short lived and the team was ripped apart the following seasons. Sadly the Warriors didn’t make the playoffs again until the 2012/ 2013 season. Enter Steph Curry as Batman!
The 2013 playoff run was a great one. At the time the Warriors pulled off what was then considered an upset over the Denver Nuggets. I believe looking back we can all say the Denver Nuggets were not a very talented bunch. They even went as far as to fire the NBA’s coach of the year George Karl after the Warriors sent them packing in round one. It was a perfect storm for the upstart Warriors. A crazy home crowd, a hot shooting Steph, a healthy Andrew Bogut, and a rookie named Harrison Barnes who decided the spot light of the playoffs was his new playground. Anyone see Barnes since?
In round two against the defending NBA Champs San Antonio Spurs…. Ray Allen from the corner….good! “POW!” The Warriors took the eventual Western Conference Champs to 6 games all the while looking like they very well could have pulled the series out. With the Warriors run into the second round of the 2013 playoffs the world had new expectations and the team a new hope! Steph Curry about to make the leap to a superstar level. The fans and front office knew it was just a matter of time. The Warriors went out and signed Andre Iguodala to a 4 year $46M deal. This also included losing unprotected first round picks in 2014 and 2017. A mighty sum for a guy who averaged 9pts a game, turnover prone, with a not so dependable jump shot. Certainly a defensive stopper and a nice piece to a puzzle but no Robin. Klay Thompson a third year pro and part of the splash brothers. Klay leads the league in not passing. This is not a stat anyone dreams being apart of. Klay was the only player in the league to pass the ball approximately 49.4% of the time he got the ball. The only player in the league under 50%! Klay averaged 38 touches a game and was only credited with 19 passes per game. I repeat the only player in the league! I know he is part of the splash brothers so he can shoot and that’s a good thing but lets not get crazy with Klay and his efficiency. Klay’s player efficiency was below the league average on a per minute production. And yes this stuff matters! Again no Robin. This list of average to above average players on the Warriors goes on; Andrew Bogut, David Lee (I admit this guys is a double double machine but I need to see him do it when it counts). My eyes tell me he is a stat stuffing machine and nothing more. Draymond Green, Harrison Barnes, the league is filled with these type of players. Certainly all of these guys play a role and in some cases a very important one but Steph needs help! His Bat signal will be bright this off season and it’s up to Bob Meyers and Joe Lacob to answer the call.
The 2013 – 2014 Warrior season went as well as it could have in the Western Conference. The Warriors won over 50 games and made it to the playoffs. I would say they almost over achieved by taking the Clippers to a 7th game and nearly pulling it off. Based on their current roster the past season was a good one. The Warriors didn’t over achieve or under achieve, they simple achieved. Anyone who truly thought the Warriors were title contenders had significantly over rated the roster and studied the leagues history very little.
The summer of 2014 is going to be a big one for the Warriors and the front office. Again no first rounder in what many say is the deepest draft in years. To add a little salt the Warriors currently have no salary cap room. Their one mission over the next year is to find Steph’s Robin. If they don’t the Warriors will continue to make early exits in the playoffs year after long year! Iggy is getting older, Bogut is unreliable to stay healthy, Lee is frustrating, Klay is a ball hog. The history of the league or should I say the history of winning in the NBA mandates you have two superstars. The Warriors need to find one and there maybe a little “Love” in their future! #anythingittakes
Bob Foran