The 2017 Warriors Are The Greatest Team of All Time
The 2017 Golden State Warriors are the greatest NBA team of all time and it’s not even close. This Warriors team was a juggernaut and I knew from the start of the 2017 season that no team would stand a chance against them once they had figured out their chemistry. Seriously though, this 2017 Warriors team was leagues above the second best team in the NBA. Whether you think it was the Cavs or the Spurs, it doesn’t really matter, this Warriors team was insanely better than them. From the moment that Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Kevin Durant stepped foot on the court together, we knew that the only way this team could lose was through injuries.
This team had the reigning MVP, a previous MVP, and two other ALL-NBA players all together. Also a very deep bench with a mix of veteran leadership and young talent. Oh I forgot to mention that this team had a former Finals MVP as their sixth man. Sheer talent wise, there had never been a team as loaded as this one. Let’s look at what they accomplished in the regular season. One thing that never gets mentioned about this team was their record. The Warriors finished with a 67–15 record, which is top five for the most wins in a season. They had an impressive 11.63 margin of victory, meaning that they would usually beat their opponents by 11.63 points. They had the highest offensive rating and the second best defensive rating, showing how they were the best offense and second best defense. This just goes onto to show how well-rounded this team really was.
Now their playoff accomplishments were simply insane. The Warriors swept through the first three rounds of the playoffs. The dismantled the Blazers, embarrassed the Jazz, and destroyed the Spurs. Throughout all three series, the Warriors ppg was near to twenty more than their opponent. For example, in the Blazers series, the Warriors averaged 119.5 ppg, while the Blazers put up only 101.5 ppg. Then the Warriors made the NBA finals, where they beat Cleveland 4–1. Many people thought this series would be close but it wasn’t. During this time Stanley Cup ratings went up 75% because people were bored of the Warriors destroying the league so they watched hockey again demonstrating how dominate the Warriors were. To further emphasize my point; the 2017 Warriors weren’t just beating teams but were absolutely destroying them.
As you can see, the Warriors 2017 season was insane, which is why I think they are the greatest team of all time. The only challenger to them would be the ‘96 Chicago Bulls. The 2001 Lakers as good as they were have no shot of beating this team. Listen, I don’t think anyone on the Warriors could stop Shaq, but that is just one player. Kobe on the other hand, was good but was nowhere near what Steph Curry was. I mean, Kobe didn’t have a crazy impact on the Lakers. Looking at it, the Lakers would’ve still won the championship without Kobe in 2001. This Warriors team is just too quick and play such smooth pass-first basketball, that I don’t think anyone on the Lakers can guard Curry, Klay, and KD at the same time.
Now let’s move on to see why the Bulls are the only real challenger. Now matchup wise the one thing that people say that is just disrespectful to Curry is that Ron Harper would lock him up. What?! How can a man who has never even made an all-defensive team lock up the second-best point guard of all time?! This is just ludicrous, Stephen Curry is the one who led the league in steals not Ron Harper! Stephen Curry easily has the matchup advantage here.
Now for Klay vs MJ. Yes, obviously MJ wins here but it’s not like he is dropping 50. Klay Thompson is an exceptional defender and I think he can easily hold his own here. Yes, it maybe hard for him to get shots up, but when Harper is matched on him, it’ll be easier. For KD vs Pippen, I think KD has the advantage. “Better offense always beats defense,” which I think is the case. KD could get switches on to smaller defenders which could help him thrive too.
The rest of the positions are equally matched, but I think the Warrior’s bench is deeper and better. All this team has to do is create offense through transition, move the ball frequently, and play average defense to win. Seriously, the Warriors don’t get enough credit for their defense! Defense is not just man-to-man but is established through help and covering zones, so this argument about the Bulls torching the Warriors is crazy.
At the end of the day I don’t see any team in NBA history coming close to beating this Warriors team. I may be wrong in your opinion but looking at how they dominated the 2017 season it is not a far-fetched thesis.
