The Golden State Warriors are amid a historical dynasty; one that can be considered arguably the best of all time. They are leaps and bounds ahead of the rest of the competition today to the point that they have unanimously been penciled in as NBA champions during each of the last three summers.
There is no team which can beat the Warriors when they are firing on all cylinders. There has not been a conceivable situation where anyone has been able to see Golden State losing four of seven games.
There has not been any team good enough to challenge and beat the Warriors. We thought the Houston Rockets were the team last year, and they were a Chris Paul hamstring away from doing so.
But this season, the Rockets have taken tremendous steps backward, leaving no competitor in the conference. We must look to the Eastern Conference to find the biggest threats to the Warriors completing their three-peat.
But there still is no equal match for them and has not been for two-plus seasons. Maybe until now though. With the internal discord that has is going on right now, we are learning that the only people that can beat Golden State and end their dynasty are the Warriors themselves.
We all know what happened. Kevin Durant did not like how Draymond Green handled a late-game situation against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday. He proceeded to confront Green on the decision which then turned into a heated conversation on the sideline.
Usually, this isn’t a big deal because it happens a lot. But it didn’t just stop there, as it leaked into the locker room postgame and got even more heated, with Green calling Durant an expletive that rhymes with “twitch” and bringing up his upcoming free agency and using it to imply Durant has been selfish and noncommittal to the team.
Green reportedly even brought up how the team was winning before Durant even arrived. Exact details of what happened are unknown, but it was apparently enough to warrant a team-handed one-game suspension for Green.
And Durant’s brother spoke out on Twitter regarding the situation.
Kevin Durant's brother weighs in 👀
(via IG/TDurant) pic.twitter.com/M7NLczRSQQ
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 14, 2018
But this isn’t the first time they have had a run-in like this. There is a long history of murkiness between the two, but nothing on this level, painting a picture of a relationship that may not be as great as we’d think.
And Durant’s postgame presser on Monday was rather telling even though he didn’t give the media anything “juicy” to work with.
Athletes and teams in all sports mostly always give the media nothing to work with. They usually “say the right things” by providing the politically correct answers to defuse the fire instead of letting it linger on or get even more significant. Even if they have to lie about it or stretch the truth a bit.
But Durant’s answers were all deflections, showing that there is something wrong but that he doesn’t want to open out about it.
He admitted to not hashing things out with Green. When asked about their friendship, he could have easily said something along the lines of “brothers fight,” “it was the heat of the moment,” “we’re good,” etc. But he opted to avoid the question, putting into question their relationship.
It’s been a significant talking point that has people believing that this may be Durant’s last season in the Bay Area. And if that’s true, the gap between Golden State and the rest of the NBA nearly closes. And depending on where he goes, it may be that someone else supersedes Golden State as the best team in the league.
Normally, it would be an overreaction to think that a simple fallout can be enough to end something special like this dynasty, but numerous reports from respected journalists point to a legitimate chance that Durant is gone after the year, while some go as far as saying that it’s a done deal. We even have a current, but anonymous, member of the Warriors with the same belief, according to The Athletic.
“With what was said, there is already no way Durant is coming back. The only hope is that they can say this summer, ‘See, KD. We’ve got your back. We protected you from Draymond.'”
And when you consider all the details, it makes you look at a moment from Monday night from a different scope.
Underrated part of KD vs. Dray:
”That’s why I’m out” 🧐 pic.twitter.com/ukEsbKNgMv
— Thomas Duffy (@TJDhoops) November 14, 2018
This is the type of internal discord which can ruin a team’s season. The Warriors have the talent to overcome it, but there is a chance they may implode, however unlikely. The common goal is too big to let pettiness to get in the way.
But even if they win this year, this week may be the beginning of the end of the Warriors dynasty because Durant may leave. Winning helps, but some words can’t be taken back, and some wounds can’t be healed.
And it’s not the first time a dynasty has ended because of egos, despite success. Internal factors are the only way to stop a super team or beat an elite athlete. They can only beat themselves.
We saw it with Kobe and Shaq. We saw it with Kyrie and LeBron. The only person who was able to end Tiger Woods’ dominance was himself.
Athletes aren’t emotionless robots. They have feelings and hold grudges like a normal human being. Winning doesn’t always make up for all. It helps, but there are things beyond just the court.
The relationship between Durant and Green doesn’t seem so high no matter how they appear to the media. Green is tough, loud, full of emotion, and an instigator while Durant is considered softer, more sensitive and quiet, and unforgetting.
The combination is an interesting one because it’s not a great one, and because of it, the relationship between the two as the season goes on is one to keep an eye on.
