Quote:
Originally Posted by bobswire
The Warriors are pretty much home grown and when Barnes turned down their contract offer two years ago (and subsequently disappeared in the playoffs last year)gave the Warriors the opportunity to pursue K.D. Credit the Warriors F.O. drafting smart,contract negotiating and hiring Kerr to guide them. That's not luck,give credit where do,fortune and universe had no more bearing on their success than any other teams lack there of.
Durant said it best,"“Like I’m the reason why Orlando couldn’t make the playoffs for five, six years in a row?” he said. “Am I the reason that Brooklyn gave all their picks to Boston? Like, am I the reason that they’re not that good (laughs). I can’t play for every team, so the truth of the matter is I left one team. It’s one more team that you probably would’ve thought would’ve been a contender. One more team. I couldn’t have made the (entire) East better. I couldn’t have made everybody (else) in the West better.”
You want to know about the team, go here. http://www.goldenstateofmind.com/ |
I don't deny that certain smart choices put GSW where they are, but if Steph doesn't get hurt 5 years ago he's on a Max deal and they can't afford Durant. If Durant's FA doesn't coincide with the largest cap spike in a generation, they can't afford Durant. If they win the title last year, then the PR cost is too high for Durant to go there. If OKC makes the finals last year, Durant probably feels compelled to run it back one more time, at least.
My point is not that the Ws aren't well managed. They are. But its silly to pretend like good fortune isn't an equal contributor along with hard smart work.
As for Durant not being repsonsbile for crappy basketball in the East, I will give him that. It's undeniable however, that he made an already great team better while simultaneously rendering their toughest opponent toothless. If you didn't have the Ws as a huge favorite to roll to a title you weren't paying attention, and that makes basketball boring outside of the Bay Area.