Wow. Just wow. NBA free agency has been crazy. Perhaps the craziest since Kevin Durant’s choice to leave Oklahoma City, or maybe LeBron’s choice to leave Cleveland the first time.
For the Lakers, losing the offseason despite signing LeBron is tough, but Los Angeles are trying their best. The big shock, however, is that an All-NBA talent and perhaps the best centre in the NBA is going to the reigning champs; the Golden State Warriors.
Wow.
I have followed basketball since I was about eight years old – the last years of the Michael Jordan era. I remember sitting in shock when the Celtics were able to bring in Kevin Garnett in one offseason to reignite the glory days of the past. Or the super team LeBron created in Miami to combat these Celtics who continually bested him in the playoffs.
But this Warriors team is something else.
Yesterday’s news that the Warriors had managed to sign arguably the best centre in the NBA in Demarcus Cousins (admittedly coming off a torn achilles) was shocking. A team that’s won the last two championships quite easily, sweeping the most recent finals series, just got a whole lot stronger.
So strong in fact, that the finals series for next season may have already been won. The Lakers are a number of pieces away from serious contention, the Rockets have lost a key piece in Trevor Ariza and the Thunder are still home to Carmelo Anthony.
Boston may be the only realistic challenger, and even then would any of Boston’s starting five make the starting five of the Warriors?
Legacy is a big thing in the NBA and it is an intriguing question on how this Warriors team will be remembered and, perhaps more interestingly – how the players will be remembered.
Cousins, who has failed to play in a minute of playoff action in his caree,r will now almost be guaranteed a ring next, but will there forever be an asterisk attached to this ring?
The Warriors now have a very legitimate claim at calling themselves the greatest dynasty of all time.
Greater than the legendary Bill Russell-led Celtics, the showtime Lakers or even the Jordan-led Bulls. They have won three championships out of the last four and will most likely complete a three-peat next year, they also compiled a 73-9 season – besting the record besting the old record set by the Bulls.
But will this team be remembered as fondly as the Bulls, Celtics or Laker teams of the past?
People are quick to diminish to careers of Charles Barkley and Patrick Ewing – to name just two – because they failed to win a ring. That ignores the fact that they had to go through arguably the greatest player of all time in Michael Jordan.
Barkley, in particular, was able to take Jordan to six games in the finals and won the regular season MVP over Jordan in the same year.
Will Durant and presumably Cousins be celebrated as some of the great champions like Kobe Bryant, Russell, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Jordan or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of the past? Or will people say “yeah they won, but look at the team”?
You can ignore Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green because they were drafted by the Warriors and won a ring before Durant arrived.
Will Cousins – who has never made the playoffs and caused numerous problems for the Sacramento Kings – be viewed as taking the easy way out if he is unable to ever return to these presumable heights on another team?
If Durant does decide to leave one day to win somewhere else, will people downplay these championships as him needing three or four other all-stars to win a championship?
Barkley, Patrick Ewing, John Stockton and Karl Malone never won a ring, but will they be more fondly remembered then Durant and Cousins 20 years from now?
Garrett Brooks
Roar Rookie
To be fair on the Cousins front, his injury had a huge effect on his off-season. Likely made the best decision for his long term and short term future, and if he's to be believed wasn't really getting offers like he hoped.
Garrett Brooks
Roar Rookie
LeBron's titles were very different though. Yes he has outplayed him, but (especially this past season) you have to at least acknowledge the fact that Durant was working with a lot more fire power. When so many weapons are on the floor, vs so few weapons, it makes one guys life harder and the others easier.
astro
Guest
I've no clue where your must "win in consecutive years' nonsense comes from, but 5 championships, a 950-396 record over 17 seasons, a stretch of 16 50-win seasons with the lockout-season having them on a 61-win pace over 82 games, sure sound like a dynasty to me. And what on earth does GS beating the Celtics team from 30 years ago have to do with anything???
Jerry
Guest
He's not actually the best player on GS though. He gets bigger numbers than Curry, but look at the results when either of them are out and it's obvious that Curry is more important. I'd also dispute he outplayed James in this years finals.
astro
Guest
I'm no doctor...but...I'm not convinced Cousins will be the same player after this injury. Of course, I could be completely wrong, and maybe Cousins is not too far off what he was pre-injury, in which case, no team stands a chance!
Jerry
Guest
I dunno if you have to win back to back - would you say the Bad Boys or the Rockets have more claim to dynasty status than the 80's Celtics or the Spurs? Nope. Winning multiple titles with the same team over a long period is still a dynasty IMO. If anything a team that can do it over 7/8 years is more impressive than one that does it in 3/4 as the former shows the ability to retool with new pieces.
express34texas
Guest
SA can't even be considered a dynasty. You need to win in consecutive years at least once to have any kind of dynasty status. And GS isn't as far off as you think from the 1990s Bulls or the 1960s Celtics. In terms of number of titles, yea, but more to it than that. If GS wins in 2019, that's 4 in 5 years, which is something the Bulls never did. For each respective era, sure the Celtics are tops, but much tougher today to win, and these latest GS teams would beat up on those Celtics teams.
express34texas
Guest
Do people downplay James' titles? Hardly. James gets a pass from almost everything, at least relative to most superstars. KD going to GS seemed weak to me, but now his legacy will be greater because he'll be the best player on at least 2 title teams. He's not a better now than when he was in OKC though, just better casts. But, he has outplayed James in these last 2 Finals.
Jacks
Guest
Thanks for the response! I think the signing of cousins is significant. He changes their ability to run out any style of play that they want. He maybe a glorified 6th man but his an All NBA level talent. I think Durant and cousins will have questions asked about their careers if they are unable to ever reach the summit without the level of talent present in San Francisco.
Jerry
Guest
Yeah, but it's only one season - that they probably would have won anyway.
Mushi
Guest
On cousins It's a big factor because - they will have an all NBA guy waiting to beat up the reserves when the deathstar rotates off. - injuries were really the only route to these guys losing, so now they adjust to subbing in an all nba player, which other team has that...
Lara
Guest
Durant did take a soft option . For Durant to prove a point , he needs to leave n return to OKC to complete unfinished business . GWS change the way the game is played in the NBA , you still need somebody to rebound but the passing and outside shooting is similar to Asian teams , who have played the game this way for decades , so it is not something new, just new to the NBA. Cousins in 20years time...who knows , many players buy a ring, nothing wrong with that, just good business.
astro
Guest
Few things going on here... 1. The Cousins signing is not as big a deal as what it looks to be. He won't play half the season at least and no one is certain of what shape he'll be in when he returns. He'll almost certainty not re-sign with the Warriors after this season anyway for a bunch of reasons (eg. cap, his salary demands etc). And even if healthy for the playoffs, he won't change the Warriors best 5 (with Iggy and Green at C). So, while it sounds like a huge deal, in reality, he might not be as big a factor as what people think... 2. "The Warriors now have a very legitimate claim at calling themselves the greatest dynasty of all time." Whoa! The Warriors are undoubtedly one of the best teams in NBA history, but they have a ways to go before they touch Jordan's Bulls or Russell's Celtics...I'd even put the Pop/Duncan Spurs ahead of them as a 'dynasty' at this point. Bottom line is 8 teams have won 59 of the 72 championships in history. Its not that uncommon that great teams form and dominate the league...The Warriors are just the latest version of this, but not the best...yet. 3. The point about how this team will be remembered relates more to how we (usually fondly) remember teams of the past, than anything else. Jordan's Bulls were a fantastic team, but that doesn't diminish his greatness, for example. Same with Magic's Lakers. So I dont think it will impact how Durant is remembered...We all know how good he is, with or without the Warriors titles. And we all know what a wasted talent Cousins is...with or without a Warriors ring this year...