It’s all over for the Golden State Warriors as we once knew them. But every NBA dynasty reaches a difficult end.
That’s where these Warriors are today sitting at home as the playoffs are set to begin this weekend. The season came to a conclusion with a blowout loss to the Sacramento Kings in an NBA play-in game on Wednesday.
Now, Klay Thompson is a free agent and even if he’s re-signed, the Warriors are showing a lot of mileage on their basketball tires. They may have kept their core of Thompson, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green together for a year or two too long.
Today’s Warriors are no different than some of the founding fathers of the dynasty world.
Back in the 1980s, Larry Bird‘s Boston Celtics suffered a similar fate. Injuries. Age. More injuries. More aging. Same thing with Magic Johnson‘s Los Angeles Lakers.
Eventually, things fall apart. No one can fight off the sometimes cruel reality of time.
That is where the Warriors are today. Over the hill but trying to hang on, fruitlessly so. It would take a massive trade, and that trade may not be available, to keep them afloat. Reality, then, is starting to set in.
“We’ve been really blessed here with some amazing players and multiple championships and Finals appearances — the highest of highs,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told NBA reporters. “This is the flip side. This is life. This is how it works. You don’t get to stay on top forever.”
One thing we know for certain, and that’s the idea that Curry will retire as a Warrior. As it should be. But he has to know the title window is closed. The playoff window may be, too.
“At the end of the day, I just want to win. I know that’s fully possible,” Curry said. “I know this summer there’s gonna be a lot of conversations and trying to set up ourselves to win — whatever that means. I hope that’s the outcome.”
The Warriors used to know. Now they can only hope. When a dynasty dies, hope is usually met with disappointment. The Warriors understand more of that likely awaits.
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