NBA Playoffs: I Hate the Golden State Warriors
Well, the Rockets pissed away their fourth quarter lead the way an 8-year-old blows $20 they found in the street on a yo-yo, 3 Cow Tales, and a few tries at the Plush Bus. (Why cow tales? Because there’s no other candy fitting enough to emphasize the mess Houston just made for themselves and for the NBA.)
Coming into Friday’s game, with Durant out and Boogie still ailing, the major topic of discussion for writers and pundits was the idea of “The Warriors’ Last Stand”. Were we two games away from the end of the Golden State Dynasty? Could the Rockets take their “found money” and reach the goal that had so eluded them? The answer to that question, was a devastating and gut-wrenching, “no”.
“The Warriors Last Stand” was not a disappointing upset at the hands of their self-proclaimed arch-rivals after a season of dysfunction, switch-flipping, drag-ass’n, and underachieving. As it turns out, the Warriors’ “Last Stand” was actually, finally making me hate them.
Let me explain…
As the Warriors slowly placed a pillow over the face of the Rockets and smothered them, I began to feel a sensation I hadn’t known before: Utter Disdain for Stephen Curry. With around 2 minutes to go, Steph was wagging his hand and grimacing as if he was horribly injured, he could only hang the appendage by his side while he dribbled… seconds later, he turned, moved up the court with ease, made a few elusive maneuvers, and took the ball straight to the hoop — one of his many daggers down the stretch.
It was a beautiful and gritty move that only a champion could execute, a highlight that previously would’ve sent a chill down my spine. But this time, it frustrated me, angered me even. After all, Durant’s injury all but guaranteed this was James Harden’s moment, Mike D’Antoni’s opportunity, Chris Paul’s redemption, and the Rockets’ reckoning. This was a redemption story years in the making, and the NBA world was ready to see it unfold. Instead, it was another playoff dispatching, courtesy of the one-hand-tied-behind-their-back Warriors, the fourth such loss in five years…
All I could think about was what this meant for the league, for the rest of this postseason. What have you done, Rockets? Do you understand what squandering such a gift from the basketball gods means? Durant’s injury was your karmic reward for Chris Paul’s geriatric hamstring problems last season, D’Antoni’s loss to the Spurs in 2007, 27 straight missed threes, and James Harden’s MVP loss to Russell Westbrook… And you’re going to not only lose at home, but you’re not going to even force a game 7?? We get the most entertaining second round in a decade, and now it’s all over?
In some alternate universe, there’s a game 7 to this series, but we don’t even get that. All that’s left now is deciding who will lose to the inexplicably rejuvenated and soon-to-be-not-as-shorthanded Warriors in the Conference Finals and then the Finals. Beyond what this means for this postseason, this Houston team’s monumental failure may completely change the legacy of this Warriors run.
As I began realize what sort of historical ramifications a loss like this could have, and as the clock agonizingly ticked down to zero, Harvey Dent’s words in The Dark Knight came to mind: “You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain”
Dent was right about justice, and he sure as crud was right about Golden State, too. This was the moment the Warriors swung from the symbol of “joyful” and “pure” basketball, to “guy who turns on unlimited grind on Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2”. I almost forgot that even without their best player, Golden State is still a cheat code. And what used to be a breathtaking, awe-inspiring experience, has now become as life-giving and entertaining as watching Thanos snap his finger.
The Warriors — had they lost to the Rockets — could’ve gone down as back-to-back champs, the most talented group ever constructed, and potentially the purest form of basketball played in the modern era. Sure, many people dislike how this roster construction happened, but few can deny how enjoyable this team is to watch when they’re clicking, and how likable characters like Steph, Klay, Durant, Draymond, and Kerr can be at times. Beyond that, Kevin Durant was staking a claim as the game’s best player. A loss to Houston with Kevin Durant off the floor would weirdly further validate his standing in the league, as well as the Warriors’ choice to sign him.
This would’ve been the moment of “comeuppance” the Heatles faced in the 2011 Finals. More importantly, it would have been a breath of fresh air for a league subjected to the least amount of parody on any league in all of sports for almost three years.
But no. Steph Curry, the baby-faced assassin — whose playful demeanor has instantly transformed into what feels like Jimmy Fallon-esque pandering — decided that balance, karma, fairness, and truly uncertain outcomes would have to wait until July 1st. Until then, a devastated Houston in the rearview (cow tales in hand), it’s Golden State’s league, and everyone else is just playing in it.
Thanks to the Rockets, every NBA fan has to move on with an uncomfortable sense of certainty concerning what lies ahead. And with every free throw Curry hit down the stretch, he reminded us all what we already knew last July: Only one team has ever, legitimately had a chance to win the 2019 NBA Finals — the Golden State Warriors.
And I hate them.
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