STORIES OF THE YEAR
Another NBA title cements Dub Dynasty
Still seething from their Game 7 home-court loss to Cleveland the year before, theWarriors reloaded with Kevin Durant, who after a scary knee injury that sidelined him for two months, led Golden State to a 16-1 scorched- earth playoff run, including a 4-1 smackdown of LeBron James and the Cavs in the NBA Finals with a proper Oracle Arena celebration. It is anybody’s guess when this golden era might start to ebb, but after three straight Finals and two championships, it shows no signs of slowing and the Bay Area has learned to savor every epic moment.
2. NFL grants OK to Raiders: Just Vegas, baby
When they returned in 1995, we thought the Raiders were back to stay. But more new stadium snafus at the Oakland Coliseum and rejection in Los Angeles turned owner Mark Davis’ attentions to a welcoming Las Vegas, and this time, the NFL was on board with the move. Understanding the profit potential of a new stadiumin a growing, uptapped market, the league helped facilitate and finance the move. Vegas broke ground on the stadium site in November. They’re really leaving again, folks.
3. Jed York goes clean slate with Lynch, Shanahan
The embattled young 49ers owner finally came to the realization that he didn’t just need to change his general manager/head coach braintrust, but he needed to change the entire franchise culture with fresh ideas and fresh faces. So out went Trent Baalke and Chip Kelly, and after an exhaustive search, John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan were hired jointly with sixyear deals as equal partners in orchestrating the team’s rebirth. Lynch had never been a G.M. and Shanahan had never been a head coach, but they instantly set a course of openness, organizational collaboration and calculated optimism. Even after an 0-9 start, it nonetheless felt right.
4. Bumgarner mishap keys Giants’ derailment
The season didn’t feel right from the opener, when prized closer acquisition Mark Melancon blew a save at Arizona in his first outing. But it got worse, much worse. When durable ace Madison Bumgarner, blowing off some steam during a late April off day in Colorado following a hard-luck 0-3 start, took a tumble off a mountain dirt bike and injured his left shoulder. He didn’t return until July 21, by which time the Giants were 21 games under .500 and out of it. Their slide continued unabated to last place and 98 losses, their second-worst loss total ever, a true season from hell.
5. Marleau Era ends after two decades in teal
Patrick Marleau came to the Sharks as an 18-yearold in 1997 and over the course of 19 seasons, became the iconic face of their franchise. A six-time All-Star, Marleau’s name is at the top of the team’s career lists in virtually every category but penalty minutes. He was a clean, fast, soft-spoken skater who wasn’t into fighting. Just scoring ( he scored his 500th career goal this past season for San Jose). He served as the Sharks’ captain for several seasons, but after 2016-17, Patty did the unthinkable — he departed as a free agent to Toronto at age 38. But he always will be a Shark, and up to now, the best Shark ever.
6. Jimmy G: An instant 49ers smash hit at QB
When Colin Kaepernick opted out of his 49ers contract in March, the new regime signed journeyman Brian Hoyer and drafted C. J. Beathard as temporary replacements. But in a deal that might go down in team annals as a franchise-turner, the Niners acquired Tom Brady’s New England backup, Jimmy Garoppolo, on Oct. 30 for a second-round pick. After three weeks learning the offense, Garoppolo took off like a meteor. He threw for more than 1,000 yards and completed nearly 70 percent of his passes in his first three starts, all victories. In short, he looked primed for a long, fruitful future as the 49ers’ next star quarterback.
7. Marshawn a hometown Raiders Lynch-pin
Following a stellar career in Seattle, Marshawn Lynch realized a dream. One of Oakland’s most accomplished football native sons came out of a year’s retirement to play for his hometown Raiders. A graduate of Oakland Tech as well as a star tailback at Cal, Lynch rushed for 76 yards in the opener and the Raiders got off to a roaring 2- 0 start. But the homecoming honeymoon lost a bit of luster when the Raiders’ overall per- formance sagged. Despite a one-game league suspension, Lynch was posting a solid season, rushing for 790 yards through his first 14 games with seven touchdowns and plenty of “Beast Mode.”
8. Stanford tradition: Another Heisman runner-up
If not for an ankle injury that forced him to miss a midseason game and restricted his performance level over the final five games of the regular season, tailback Bryce Love might have bro- ken Stanford’s 21st century Heisman Trophy spell at last. As it turned out, Love joined former Cardinal stars Toby Gerhart, Andrew Luck (twice) and Christian McCaffrey as the school’s fifth runnerup for college football’s top award since 2009 despite rushing for 1,973 yards and averaging 8.3 yards a carry entering Thursday’s Alamo Bowl.
9. A’s flunk out at Laney College ballpark site
After their recommitment to Oakland, the A’s finally announced their preferred ballpark site in September: downtown near Laney College. But the decision was met with almost instant opposition by neighborhood groups, school officials and students, and ultimately was rejected by the Peralta college board. For now, the A’s decade-long quest for a new ballpark returns to the Coliseum, where they are reluctant to build their long-term home despite the likelihood they will have the expansive property to themselves with the Raiders and Warriors building new facilities elsewhere.
10. Cain calls it a career with stirring AT&T exit
Starting pitcher Matt Cain was the first key piece of the Giants’ threetitle run to arrive on the scene in 2005 and remained with the club his entire career before heading into retirement at age 33 with a momentous, emotional late-September start. Cain won 104 games for the Giants over 13 seasons, threw the franchise’s only perfect game and did not allow an earned run over 21 1/3 innings in the 2010 postseason when the club won its first World Series in San Francisco. And here are the honorable mentions from 2017:
• Even after Colin Kaepernick departs the Bay Area, anthem displays continue with the 49ers, Raiders and at least one player with the A’s as protest controversies go national.
• 49ers wide receiving great Dwight Clark announces he is suffering from ALS.
• Giancarlo Stanton and Shohei Ohtani spurn the Giants, who settle for an Evan Longoria trade.
• President Donald Trump decides not to invite the Warriors to White House after players hint they would hesitate to go.
• Broadcaster Bill King finally gets his rightful place in Cooperstown.
• The Giants bring back fan favorite Pablo Sandoval after the Red Sox waive him.
• Kevin Durant takes a free-agent pay cut, allowing theWarriors to bring back Andre Iguodala and a large core of their title team.
• The A’s trade Sonny Gray and only All-Star Yonder Alonso, kick in latest youth movement with Matt Olson and Matt Chapman.
• The Warriors’ Draymond Green becomes the club’s first NBA Defensive Player of the Year.