Draymond Green Receives Harsh Reality Check on Warriors’ Legacy From NBA Hall-of-Famer

It’s impossible to tell the story of the NBA without mentioning the various dynasties that have spanned across the league’s 79 years of existence.

From the loaded Boston Celtics teams of the 1960s, to the historic Chicago Bulls teams of the 1990s and the San Antonio Spurs’ impressive run during the first 15 years of the century, there has always been a supremely dominant giant controlling the landscape of the league.

The latest dynasty to terrorize its opponents is the Golden State Warriors who won four championships in a seven-year span from 2015-2022. This particular team is different in the sense that they are the only dynasty who won their championships in multiple iterations.

The first championship was won on the back of Stephen Curry with Klay Thompson and Draymond Green playing supporting roles. But after Golden State blew the first 3-1 series lead in finals history, they added Kevin Durant that offseason, which lead to two more championships before he departed.

The former Oklahoma City Thunder forward was considered by many fans to be the most important piece of those title runs as the Warriors struggled to find their footing after he left. However, Golden State would reclaim glory in 2022, seemingly dispelling the rumors that Durant was the essential piece to the championship runs, but Hall of Fame point guard Isiah Thomas thinks differently.

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The two-time champion was a guest on Green’s podcast where he told the Warriors star how instrumental Durant was in flipping the narrative around Golden State. It’s true, if the Warriors never won another title, then Green, Curry, and Thompson would all be synonymous with choking for the rest of their lives.

But the 2022 title should negate that narrative, even if the victory didn’t come over an all-time great team. Two things can be true; Curry, Green, and Thompson’s legacies have all been enhanced by Durant, but he was never pertinent to their title hopes.