Six months ago, in the north shore of Hawaii during training camp, Kerr went on a mini diatribe about “#Ringz Culture” that especially resonates now.
“To modern sports fandom, everything is, ‘Win the championship or nothing else matters,’” Kerr said. “But it’s really not true. What matters is do you have a good team? Do you have a team that your fans love watching? Do you have a team that, ‘Hey, we’ve got a shot.’ Let’s be scrappy, let’s be tough as hell. Let’s have a team that brings a lot of juice, a lot of energy, a lot of joy. This is not a zero-sum game.”
A Larry O’Brien trophy isn’t a prerequisite to a good outcome.
Kerr, a 10-time champion, has been right about a lot of things (an incomprehensive list: taking the Warriors job over the Knicks, putting Andrew Bogut on Tony Allen, replacing David Lee in the starting lineup with Green, getting off social media, Jonathan Kuminga). Add his championship-or-bust take to the list.
To be sure, the Warriors internally are eyeing a fifth title. They’ve been winning championships since Anthony Edwards was in middle school, and they don’t intend to stop now. Just ask Green, who declared the Warriors were title bound at All-Star weekend.
That Green was even in a position to plausibly call his shot there was a testament to the dynasty-extending trade Mike Dunleavy swung for Butler. Dynasties have shelf lives, and Butler has been a preservative pushing the Warriors past their expiration date.
“Hell, I think any team has the chance when I’m on the team,” Butler said. “But I know that every team has a chance when Steph’s on the team. I get to play Robin, that’s my Batman.”
That kind of home-run trade saved the Warriors’ season and has made up for past missteps and circumstances.
There have been plenty of those.
The Warriors’ dynasty should’ve ended with Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson’s catastrophic injuries. It should’ve ended with Thompson’s 0-for-10 play-in performance last year and his subsequent departure. It should’ve ended with the Jordan Poole punch.