“You’re not gonna do it either, Steve!” – When Chris Bosh playfully jawed back at Steve Kerr on the Warriors chances of completing a three-peat in 2019 originally appeared on Basketball Network.
The Golden State Warriors wanted to complete a rare three-peat in 2019, although Chris Bosh felt otherwise. The former Toronto Raptors star made a playful forecast with his comments directed at Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. It was somehow payback for the champion coach’s lecture when the Miami Heat wanted to accomplish the same feat.
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“Well, it wasn’t a lecture – he said we weren’t gonna do it,” Bosh said in an ESPN interview in 2019. “So I’m gonna tell him, ‘You’re not gonna do it either, Steve!”
Playful as his comments were, it was obvious that Bosh was siding with the Toronto Raptors at the time. He started his career with the Raptors in 2003 and stayed there until 2010 before moving to the Heat.
Why Kerr made that call
Steve Kerr, an analyst for TNT at the time, gave his insights on the Heat’s chances of completing a three-peat in 2014. He singled out the Oklahoma City Thunder or the San Antonio Spurs as the biggest hurdles for the Heat in their quest for a third-straight title.
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In his opinion, Kerr insinuated that emotional exhaustion would keep Miami from winning another title. Steve was referring to the fact that the Heat had faced a lot of criticism, particularly the formation of its Big Three—Bosh, LeBron James, and Dwyane Wade.
“Emotionally, it’s just exhausting to keep doing it year after year, particularly when you have to deal with everything Miami has to deal with on a daily basis,” Kerr said via the Los Angeles Times.
It turns out that Kerr’s forecast came to fruition. The Heat fell to the San Antonio Spurs in the 2014 Finals 4-1, which was a sweet payback for San Antonio after losing to the same team in the 2013 Finals.
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Odds were against the Dubs
Realistically, the Warriors found themselves on the wall facing the Raptors in the 2019 Finals. Key players were dealing with injuries at the time, including Kevin Durant (calf), Klay Thompson (torn ACL), DeMarcus Cousins (quadriceps tear), and Kevon Looney (chest).
Regardless, the Warriors gave it their all against the resurgent Raptors quintet. Unfortunately, that effort was not enough to keep Toronto from winning its first title in franchise history, winning it all in six games.
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Danny Green, who won his second championship at the time, admitted that the Raptors caught a break with key Warriors players who were not at 100%. However, he remained confident they would win it all even if KD, Boogie, and Klay were healthy.
“A lot of times you need some luck on your side, and we got a little lucky, but I still feel that if those guys were healthy, we would love to take on the challenge,” Green said.
KD injury was costly
For the Warriors, Durant’s injury was arguably the big difference. Dealing with a calf strain, KD didn’t play in the Western Conference Finals and the first four games of the Finals. For former general manager Bob Myers, Golden State could have won the title if only the 2014 MVP had been healthy.
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“Nobody is gonna like this in Toronto, but I think if Durant stays healthy, we get that one,” Myers stated.
Despite not completing that three-peat, the Warriors lorded it over the rest from 2015 to 2019. They won three of the five championships in that run and have since maintained that winning pedigree. To date, the Warriors remain a dangerous team to reckon with. Thompson and Durant are no longer around, while Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are reaching the twilight of their careers.
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But Golden State is in good hands with Kerr, who is still around to call the shots. The five-time champion coach has been able to keep the team together with old and new faces. With him at the helm, expect the Warriors to still be up there and fighting for the top prize.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 4, 2025, where it first appeared.