To our NEW, first-time CHAMPIONS...
Apr 3, 2022 21:10:51 GMT -5
Tampa Bay Bull Sharks, razorbacks, and 4 more like this
Post by Miege22 on Apr 3, 2022 21:10:51 GMT -5
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
The story of the 2022 NBA champions starts in back in November of 2020. Coming off a disappointing season that was cut short due to COVID, the Golden State Warriors went into the abbreviated off-season determined to not only make it back to the playoffs, but compete for a title. Blockbuster trades for Devin Booker and Jimmy Butler appeared to put the Warriors in position to battle the other top West teams for the crown... but disaster struck. The Warriors endured the season from hell as COVID and injuries wreaked havoc on them from day 1. They started 0-8, and that was the season. Without their pick, the Warriors were in a tough position. Or so it seemed...
In the summer of 2021, the Golden State Warriors refused to rest on their laurels. They made a whopping 13 trades, and they made their bones bringing in a couple of re-sign eligible players: Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet. Siakam came in with championship experience, after winning a ring in Brooklyn. VanVleet was on the unbeaten Nets team in 2020 that was about to make the Finals before COVID. Despite the pedigree(s), they were clearly undervalued because of their free agent status. The Warriors weren't done though. They turned Tobias Harris and the 15th pick in Kristaps Porzingis, who they then flipped for Nikola Vucevic. Vuc, like Siakam and FVV, came in with a ring and yet was not viewed as a top-tier fantasy center. Of course, how Vuc was viewed and what he is are two dramatically different things, and what Vuc is is a walking double-double.
The reshaping of the roster helped GS enter the season with solid contributors up and down the roster, but they still weren't content. The Warriors made 9 more trades in-season, including bringing back Jimmy Butler after trading him in the summer to Atlanta. Suddenly, the Warriors went from solid contender to juggernaut. They started 7-0, lost 2 of 3, then won their last 6 to clinch the top overall seed. The West was no joke, though, and their reward for finishing first was an OKC team with Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum. Didn't matter. Golden State ran roughshod all over OKC and advanced easily. In the Western Conference Finals, a perennial bridesmaid, the Kansas City Kings.
This is where the story gets interesting, because the Warriors were done. With less than three days left, the Kings looked like a lock to advance to the Finals. They'd gotten superstar performances from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and CJ McCollum, and everyone else on their roster had done enough to keep Golden State at bay (no pun intended). Late Friday night, Devin Booker and Vuc shot over 50% on a significant number of attempts. Then Saturday, Love and Allen went a combined 9/14. Suddenly, things were interesting. Still, they would need some good shooting and some mistakes to pull it off. They got both, as the Kings' CJ McCollum had his worst outing of the postseason. FG % was now in play. The Warriors closed by hitting 10 of their last 13 shots to win by just two makes. It was a stunning comeback by the league's best, and it pushed Golden State into their first Finals.
The Finals became something of an afterthought at that point. The Tampa Bay Bull Sharks were too banged up to put up much of a fight, and nothing could possibly top that WCF anyway. Golden State jumped out to a big lead and never looked back. It was a complete team effort, but this team was led by their big 3 of Jimmy Butler, Devin Booker, and Pascal Siakam. All three had to feel as though this title was a bit of redemption. For Butler, he was on the unbeaten Nets team that had their title hopes dashed due to COVID. For Siakam, undoubtedly it was being traded away multiple times before he came due for a re-sign. And for Booker, it had to be OKC fighting so vociferously against what ended up being a miniscule difference in salary.
The Warriors now head into next season in, arguably, the most enviable position in the league. They're the defending champions, and most of the roster will be back next year. Their heavy hitters are in the prime of their careers. The West will still be difficult, but they all have far more question marks than this Warriors team. Winning the title is not easy. Defending it is a whole lot harder. The title defense starts now.
The story of the 2022 NBA champions starts in back in November of 2020. Coming off a disappointing season that was cut short due to COVID, the Golden State Warriors went into the abbreviated off-season determined to not only make it back to the playoffs, but compete for a title. Blockbuster trades for Devin Booker and Jimmy Butler appeared to put the Warriors in position to battle the other top West teams for the crown... but disaster struck. The Warriors endured the season from hell as COVID and injuries wreaked havoc on them from day 1. They started 0-8, and that was the season. Without their pick, the Warriors were in a tough position. Or so it seemed...
In the summer of 2021, the Golden State Warriors refused to rest on their laurels. They made a whopping 13 trades, and they made their bones bringing in a couple of re-sign eligible players: Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet. Siakam came in with championship experience, after winning a ring in Brooklyn. VanVleet was on the unbeaten Nets team in 2020 that was about to make the Finals before COVID. Despite the pedigree(s), they were clearly undervalued because of their free agent status. The Warriors weren't done though. They turned Tobias Harris and the 15th pick in Kristaps Porzingis, who they then flipped for Nikola Vucevic. Vuc, like Siakam and FVV, came in with a ring and yet was not viewed as a top-tier fantasy center. Of course, how Vuc was viewed and what he is are two dramatically different things, and what Vuc is is a walking double-double.
The reshaping of the roster helped GS enter the season with solid contributors up and down the roster, but they still weren't content. The Warriors made 9 more trades in-season, including bringing back Jimmy Butler after trading him in the summer to Atlanta. Suddenly, the Warriors went from solid contender to juggernaut. They started 7-0, lost 2 of 3, then won their last 6 to clinch the top overall seed. The West was no joke, though, and their reward for finishing first was an OKC team with Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum. Didn't matter. Golden State ran roughshod all over OKC and advanced easily. In the Western Conference Finals, a perennial bridesmaid, the Kansas City Kings.
This is where the story gets interesting, because the Warriors were done. With less than three days left, the Kings looked like a lock to advance to the Finals. They'd gotten superstar performances from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and CJ McCollum, and everyone else on their roster had done enough to keep Golden State at bay (no pun intended). Late Friday night, Devin Booker and Vuc shot over 50% on a significant number of attempts. Then Saturday, Love and Allen went a combined 9/14. Suddenly, things were interesting. Still, they would need some good shooting and some mistakes to pull it off. They got both, as the Kings' CJ McCollum had his worst outing of the postseason. FG % was now in play. The Warriors closed by hitting 10 of their last 13 shots to win by just two makes. It was a stunning comeback by the league's best, and it pushed Golden State into their first Finals.
The Finals became something of an afterthought at that point. The Tampa Bay Bull Sharks were too banged up to put up much of a fight, and nothing could possibly top that WCF anyway. Golden State jumped out to a big lead and never looked back. It was a complete team effort, but this team was led by their big 3 of Jimmy Butler, Devin Booker, and Pascal Siakam. All three had to feel as though this title was a bit of redemption. For Butler, he was on the unbeaten Nets team that had their title hopes dashed due to COVID. For Siakam, undoubtedly it was being traded away multiple times before he came due for a re-sign. And for Booker, it had to be OKC fighting so vociferously against what ended up being a miniscule difference in salary.
The Warriors now head into next season in, arguably, the most enviable position in the league. They're the defending champions, and most of the roster will be back next year. Their heavy hitters are in the prime of their careers. The West will still be difficult, but they all have far more question marks than this Warriors team. Winning the title is not easy. Defending it is a whole lot harder. The title defense starts now.