Old Men in Sweats! ™
By: Tommy T. & Barry D.
Volume 28
NBA Finals - Warriors Limping into Game 2 and a 3PEAT.
The Warriors go into tonight’s game literally limping. Everywhere. Durant hasn’t been on the court since tearing his calf muscle in game 5 of the Houston series. Cousins played in game one for the first time in 5 weeks and looked it. Limping all over the court. And former Finals MVP Iguodala limped off the court in game 1, getting his second MRI in a week. This is what happens when your team goes to the Finals five years in a row. It’s happened to every dynasty since basketball began. Look it up. They all have limped to the finish line.
The Warriors are not done. Not by any means. They still have enough star power to come back and win their third championship in a row. 4th in 5 years. Curry, Klay, and Draymond are the best core since Shaq and Kobe. But they are facing the same challenges as all their predecessors. Injuries, nagging and major. Internal dissent with impending free agency. And just old fashioned boredom and indifference.
It happened to Shaq and Kobe’s team in 2004 against the Pistons. They lost Karl Malone to a knee injury in the Finals and finally succumbed to all the pettiness and jealousy of their two superstars. Jordan’s Bulls hated each other by the time the team split up after the ’98 championship. Pippen left to finally get his huge payday. Michael retired, this time not for baseball. Phil Jackson hated GM Jerry Krause so much he practically hitchhiked back to Montana, and Rodman diappeared in Vegas. The 80’s dynasties of the Celtics and Lakers both fell to injuries. First the Celtics were a shell of themselves agianst the upstart Pistons in the ’88 playoffs. McHale dragged a broken foot all over the court for 6 games. It was a sight to see the heroic McHale refusing to quit. Bird was sprawled out on his stomach on the sidelines with a bum back, while the backcourt of Ainge and Dennis Johnson were wrapped in green neopreen sleeves everywhere. A year later the great Lakers dynasty limped into the ’89 Finals against the Pistons. Byron Scott tore a hamstring in practice. Yes Iverson, in practice. Magic tore his hamstring in game 1, because they practiced so hard leading to the finals. And Kareem was finishing his 21st season. So he was just limping period.
The Warriors are facing the same challenges as every dynastic champion in the NBA. The Old Men in Sweats have seen it all in the NBA since the 80’s. And this Warriors team has been running on fumes all season. It started with all the free agency talk regarding stars Durant and Thompson. And followed with the talk of who’s team is it really? KD’s team? Steph’s team? These questions usually arise after a few years. And the free agency talk is a huge part of it. These guys win multiple championships and want to be paid for it. Then the injuries start creeping up. Sometimes just the nagging variety like Steph’s dislocated middle finger on his left hand. Ever dislocate a finger? Try opening the car door or placing your coffee in the middle counsel. It hurts when you turn on the faucet. It hurts 24/7 for 12 weeks plus. Steph is getting his finger hit 50 times a game and still trying to focus on the bucket from 30 feet. Good luck.
Then there’s always the upstarts with their own motivation. You think Kawhi wants to win one for the entire country of Oh-Canada before he hightails it back to LA next season. There’s no way Kawhi is playing out his career in Toronto. NBA players aren’t all that concerned about a living in a cultured city like Toronto. They’re more concerned about their taxes being pilfered out of their paychecks or how many of their homeboys are nearby. So Kawhi is letting it all hang out for this one playoff run in Toronto. He’s having fun and playing completely carefree. Because he’s outta there ASAP.
Then there’s the issue of a nobody stepping up and stealing a game. The Warriors were Siakamed in Game 1. Growing up in NY if somebody called you a Siakam we were fighting for sure. It was just a bad word where we come from. So how did Pascal Siakam scored 32 points? With 7 rebounds and 5 assists? And a game-saving blocked shot in the 4th quarter? Are you kidding us? Is that the same guy who absolutely refused to shoot in Game 7 against the 76ers? Siakam was so afriad in that Game 7 it looked like the ball was meteor hot when it hit his hands. Siakam was screaming to pass the ball away. Yet he stole game one away from the Warriors with a performance of a lifetime. This “Pascal”, my not be the famous French landscape painter, but he sure did paint the landscape of game 1. We’re going to risk saying that Pascal will never have another game or painting that good in his life. 14 for 17 from the floor? Come on!
But those are the challenges every dynasty must endure. Injuries, dissension, and Siakams out of nowhere. If Golden State is going to three-peat and join the Lakers of 2002 they’re going to have to overcome the usual obstacles facing all of the dynasties of the last 40 years. Steve “The Accountant” Kerr was on that Bulls team in ’98, so I’m sure he’s not surprised. He probably saw this coming as well.
But, can he get his limping team to the 3PEAT finish line?
All of the great teams of the past have limped to the finish line in their 5th, 6th or 7th year.
It’s that time for the great Golden State Warriors!
-OMIS
“PREACHING SPORTS KNOWLEDGE FOR A LIFETIME!”