Golden State beat San Antonio on the road yesterday by a score of 92-86 to tie the ’95-’96 Bulls record of 72 wins. With one home game remaining against the reeling Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday, it seems a good bet for the Warriors to finish 73-9 and become holders of the best ever regular season mark in NBA history.
Some suggested Golden State was lucky last season in winning their championship because of injuries to Oklahoma City and Cleveland. Not the case, Golden State is simply a better team than both the Thunder and Cavs and have shown it easily this season in going 3-0 and 2-0 versus these two team this season.
There’s nothing soft about what Golden State has done. Against the Cavs, Spurs, Thunder, Raptors, and Clippers they are a collective 14-1. Only one road loss at San Antonio separates the Warriors from going 15-0 against the best competition the rest of the league has to offer.
Using this same measuring stick—Cleveland is 6-4, San Antonio is 6-8, and OKC is 6-8.
Look at their season even closer and you’ll notice other than the San Antonio road loss, this Warrior team did not lose a game against any team in the league who will be playing in the second round of the upcoming playoffs, possibly saving Boston as the lone exception. This was a team with a mission to prove they are deserving champions and possibly much more as far as their place in NBA history.
With Bogut, Iguodala, and Ezeli all now back–if anything, this team should be primed to elevate their game as the post season nears.
Conversely, OKC hasn’t played like a team on a mission. They’ve been vastly inconsistent and quite frankly, a mentally lazy team at various stages of the season. I think back to the Kevin Durant 60 Minutes interview about him being tired of finishing second and it seems a little amusing at this juncture. Play defense, take care of the ball, lead the team. That’s what championship leaders do.
This is not a coach driven league for the most part like college ball is because of the rules and the money players make nowadays. It’s a stars driven league. Your stars coach the team from within. Set the tone. Define the soul of the team. Drive the team literally through the obstacle course which is an 82 game marathon season.
Maybe Durant and Westbrook think they can just turn it on now and win twelve games against the likes of the Spurs, Warriors, and Cavs. I honestly don’t see it. I could see OKC hanging with the Spurs, but beyond that, I just don’t see a team with a enough smarts and mental toughness to go further.
Congrats to the Golden State Warriors on an amazing season.