OAKLAND — It’s no secret, start spreading the news: the Golden State Warriors are the champions of basketball. They completed the greatest playoff run to a championship in the 71 years of the NBA Finals.
The Warriors 129-120 win in game five gave them an NBA best-ever 16-1 record. Need I say this Warriors group is special? Last year’s 73-9 best-ever NBA regular season mark was somehow overshadowed by Cleveland’s stunningly dramatic NBA Finals game seven 93-89 win.
Golden State wanted their title back and signed All-Star Kevin Durant away from Oklahoma City so a team as talented and as explosive as the Warriors suddenly had two former NBA MVPs in Stephen Curry and Durant, both young, talented, hungry and in their 20s.
Let it be known whenever two former MVPs had played together previously, a championship soon followed. In history it’s happened three times: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson with the Lakers; and Julius Erving and Moses Malone with Philadelphia.
Not only did they match it, Curry and Durant swept the Western Conference playoffs, sweeping Portland, Utah, and 61 win San Antonio 4-0 4-0 4-0.
Golden State had a bullseye on Cleveland all year, matching up in the NBA Finals for a record third straight year — one at 12-0, the other at 12-1.
Durant and Curry were unstoppable; Durant scored 30 points or more in all five Finals games, averaging 35 points, eight rebounds and five assists. He was unanimously selected the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP. The Warriors finished 31-2 in their last 33 games. For three years in the regular season, 67-73-67, the Warriors are the best ever.
Their speed, movement, and ability to share the ball and play together, combined with their will and ability to shoot accurately from long range has had this league and its coaches staying up late hours trying to find ways to slow them down.
LeBron James was remarkable in defeat, however. He scored 41 points in game five and averaged a triple-double for the Finals. He’s the first player ever to achieve that. James has now slipped to 3-5 in the NBA Finals. Is Durant now the game’s best player?
These are the first Finals where four players averaged scoring 25 points per game. Durant, Curry, Kyrie Erving and James. Warriors Coach Steve Kerr missed several games this year with back issues. Assistant Coach Mike Brown, who twice was fired by Cleveland, did a remarkable job in his absence. Kerr returned for game two of the Finals and wins his second title in three years. All five Warriors starters are in their 20s — get used to this Dub Nation.
Larry Fitzgerald can be heard weekday mornings on KMOJ Radio 89.9 FM at 8:25 am, on WDGY-AM 740 Monday-Friday at 12:17 pm and 4:17 pm, and at www.Gamedaygold.com. He also commentates on sports 7-8 pm on Almanac (TPT channel 2). Follow him on Twitter at FitzBeatSr. Larry welcomes reader responses to info@larry-fitzgerald.com, or visit www.Larry-Fitzgerald.com.