DEATH OF A DYNASTY
Warriors’ run as an elite team has ended, but it’s time for celebration, not mourning
SAN FRANCISCO — Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the end of an era, you might say.
The recent passing of our dear friend, Warriors’ Dynasty, reminds us that nothing is forever, not even the Death Lineup, which actually died last summer, when Kevin Durant pulled the plug.
Many held out hope that both Warriors’ Dynasty and Death Lineup would continue to live in a slightly different form. Yeah ... um ... no. Mark Twain once wrote, “Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.” I just checked. Twain is still dead.
Certainly, for any of you who still hope that Warriors’ Dynasty eventually might be resurrected, or is simply taking a holiday down in Cabo, I salute your faith and encourage you to maintain your vigil. Pack a lunch.
Ah, but this is not a time for mourning, it is a time for celebration, especially if you like to celebrate what you can’t have anymore. Oh, the Warriors will continue to perform, in name. So will rock groups like Journey and Rancid, and you can book them for birthday parties.
The Warriors will have a chance to be revived next season, perhaps with top draft picks. I remind you that top draft picks are no guarantee of success. Just ask Todd Fuller, Patrick O’Bryant and Ekpe Udoh, who all will be in the lobby after this service, autographing memorial programs.
Let us look back briefly at the life. Warriors’ Dynasty was born in 2009. You talk about blessed events, how about the drafting of Stephen Curry? Of course, it takes more than one to tango, as someone once said — was that Twain again? — and Curry eventually was joined by Joe Lacob and Steve Kerr, and Warriors’ Dynasty grew from a toddler into a monster. An entertaining and joyful monster, to be sure, but to fans in places like Los Angeles, Cleveland and Houston, Warriors’ Dynasty was more like the kind of monster that stomps through your city like a bull in a Lego store.
It would take me all day to talk about how Warriors’ Dynasty came together piece by piece, and we don’t have all day, do we? The funeral director is giving me a “no” signal.
Suffice it to say that the Dynasty was a wondrous work of art, created brushstroke by brushstroke, through a blend of astute management, brilliant leadership and no small amount of luck.
The complex and mysterious manner in which these dynasties are formed should dissuade any of us from expecting the organization to create another Warriors’ Dynasty, like next season.
Sure, Draymond Green is still around. Still the original Man Who Can Guard Five Positions, but can he guard all five of them at once? I’m guessing no. To illustrate my point, imagine a one-man pallbearer crew. Awkward.
Warriors’ Dynasty pioneered the concept of players without positions. Now, suddenly, the team that is left to carry on consists of positions without players.
Klay Thompson will return, and so will Curry. But Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston and so many others are gone, and they ain’t coming back. That Greyhound bus has sailed.
Let us not mourn like crybabies, but let us look back in fond memory. It all seems like a blur, doesn’t it? Close your eyes and you still can see the lads gathering before each game in the hallway outside of their locker room, dancing and goofing off, preparing for another romp on the hardwood. You still can see that ever-flowing offense, five players scrambling about the floor madly, yet with precision, the ball being hot-potato’d until a Splash Brother pops open or a back-door cutter is left unguarded.
You still can see that marvelous switching defense that so often created missed shots and turnovers that were converted into fast-break baskets that brought tears to the eyes of fans who knew they were witnesses to epic basketball art.
Let us take this moment to remember some of the many people who helped create and sustain Warriors’ Dynasty. Durant, Larry Riley, Jerry West,
Bob Myers, Leandro Barbosa, Harrison Barnes and Curtis Jones, the courtside security man who fed Curry for his pregame tunnel shot.
For those who now complain that the Warriors suck, I would comfort them with the words,
“Shut up. How would you like to be a Knicks fan?”
We invite you all to attend the reception for the deceased, which will consist of 39 more home games at Chase Center this season. Remember, it’s disrespectful to boo, unless your butler forgets that you don’t take ketchup on your hot dog.
In closing, goodbye, dear Warriors’ Dynasty. You kicked butt and took names, and we will never forget you. Especially not while we’re still paying off our season tickets.
May you rest in peace. With no disrespect to Cleveland, we hope heaven smells a little bit like Champagne.