The Warriors will win the 2020 NBA title without Kevin Durant

[AlexJones]

assuming KD goes for the Knicks (pretty much a lock)
they give Klaynus the max
sign a decent wingman
maybe re-sign DeMarcus to another 1 year deal (they dont need him either, but it wouldnt hurt)

(a healthy)Steph+Klay+Dray+Kerr+decent role players... this puzzle has never been solved. They WILL win the title. Again.

They would've won in 2016 if Steph wasn't hurt.

They would've won in 2017 regardless.

KD was the reason they went down 3-2 to Houston in the first place.

[AlexJones]

Houston is bound for a downfall thanks to CP3.

Lecoon is finished (and the Lakers won't be able to put together a team for him anyway)

Jazz. Denver. OKC. NO WAY do they beat Wardell.

All the legit challengers are out East and they'll be beating each other up.

[spursistan]

Only if they implode this season and don't it win, yeah, i think they will be galvanized to prove a point next year will play with chip on their shoulders assuming they correctly use the money left by KD to improve their depth..

[Kobe'sAchilles]

Draymond is done son. He has nothing left in the tank. Warriors will lose against the Guests next year if they lose Durant. Or against the Clips once they sign Kawhi

[TD 21]

:lmao This isn't '15-16. I obviously want to see how the off season plays out before making any definitive proclamations, but the cumulative fatigue of probably 5 straight deep runs (even if some were as easy as could be) and lack of depth (suddenly their luck ass front office don't look like geniuses) makes it more likely they get exposed.


Only if they implode this season and don't it win, yeah, i think they will be galvanized to prove a point next year will play with chip on their shoulders assuming they correctly use the money left by KD to improve their depth..

In that scenario, possibly, but if/when Durant leaves, it's more likely they never win another one.

[Arcadian]

:lol Already talking about next year's finals

That's how exciting the NBA is now, eh?

[Mr. Body]

If Durant leaves, the Warriors won't win another championship. No.

[FrostKing]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DnUWujtVsAE9oU7.jpg

[spursreport]

Nope. Curry will be 32. He isn’t a youngster anymore. He will be slowly declining. Klay/Green (a year later) will command max deals. Cousins/Durant will be gone. Iggy/Livingston are old. They won’t have money to really get anyone else and the rest of that roster is shit. Plus Curry failed as the alpha in the 2016 Finals bricking all those critical shots and throwing a temper tantrum when real adversity hit. The Warriors will still be decent, but they’ll be beyond finished winning championships.

[Chris]

As long as Leonard doesn't ring.

[mystargtr34]

Lol the pre-Durant Warriors were lucky to win 1 title let alone 2. No champion has benefited from injuries to opposition a season much as these guys.

[baseline bum]

assuming KD goes for the Knicks (pretty much a lock)
they give Klaynus the max
sign a decent wingman
maybe re-sign DeMarcus to another 1 year deal (they dont need him either, but it wouldnt hurt)

(a healthy)Steph+Klay+Dray+Kerr+decent role players... this puzzle has never been solved. They WILL win the title. Again.

They would've won in 2016 if Steph wasn't hurt.

They would've won in 2017 regardless.

KD was the reason they went down 3-2 to Houston in the first place.

They would have lost 2015 if Kyrie wasn't out. Also if Durant walks and they don't renounce Thompson the most they can offer a free agent will be around the MLE even if they renounce Livingston and Cousins.

[baseline bum]

Nope. Curry will be 32. He isn’t a youngster anymore. He will be slowly declining. Klay/Green (a year later) will command max deals. Cousins/Durant will be gone. Iggy/Livingston are old. They won’t have money to really get anyone else and the rest of that roster is shit. Plus Curry failed as the alpha in the 2016 Finals bricking all those critical shots and throwing a temper tantrum when real adversity hit. The Warriors will still be decent, but they’ll be beyond finished winning championships.

Yeah there is no going back to being that 2015 team if Durant walks. They don't have MVP Iguodala any more. They don't have that Bogut who was a top of the line interior defender. They don't have a Livingston who was starting material. They don't have Harrison Barnes. As much as I liked to trash him in his Phoenix days, Barbosa fit in well with them too and they won't have him either. They're not the deep team they were before Durant and this conference goes to Houston if Durant goes East unless Cousins both comes back for around $6.4 million and comes back as Sacramento Cousins.

[spurraider21]

i dont see steph declining much. he's not some speed demon killing people because of his youthful athleticism. he can keep up this level of play for a while imo.

for reference, steve nash didnt even get to phoenix until after turning 30, and he had the greatest years of his career for the 7 or so seasons following that point.

[Spurtacular]

https://media1.tenor.com/images/56a8b2ea7d30eee65d4f36a36ed0b926/tenor.gif?itemid=13223359

[Chillen]

Even if Durant walks the Warriors will still be a legit NBA title contender as long as they have Curry, Green and Thompson on the roster. That's how ridiculously stacked the starting five is for that team now. Durant is nothing more than a ring sealer for that team. If he never signed there the Warriors likely would not have won another championship.

[Bynumite]

I can see that, they obviously get worse but still stacked enough to ring.

Harden is a perennial playoff choker until proven otherwise and Paul is declining.
A fully healthy spurs team with Kiwi and Green would have a shot imho.

Any team coming out the east is getting dragged into a 3pt chuckfest that i don't think they can win.

Plus, Curry would be hungry for that legacy defining 1st FMVP that continues to escape his grasp, possibly 2nd by then.

[Millennial_Messiah]

nah, Elian is overrated

[baseline bum]

I mean they'd be a contender, but people forget how deep they were pre-Durant. Obviously it was the right move to sacrifice that depth for a first ballot HOF'er in his prime in Durant, but if he walks they have a huge hole that they aren't going to be able to easily plug now with Curry on a market value contract, with Thompson re-signed on a market value contract, and with Raymond pulling $18.5 million also as well as Iggy pulling $17.2 million. Plus they're really going to have a hard time holding on to Cousins with only an MLE to offer, though it would probably be the non-taxpayer one if Durant bolts. They'd be in a much better position to rebuild around Curry and Thompson if Durant walked in summer 2020 instead when they'd have Raymond and Iguodala off the books.

[Chris Fall]

Yeah, doubtful they'd keep Boogie even if KD leaves. Once they re-sign Klay, they'd still be over the cap already. And as long as Boogie doesn't get injured again, I'd guess he'd be looking for a deal closer to his actual value. Remember, he turned down $40M/2 last summer from NO. I'm guessing he'd want something in the $80-100M range over 4. Golden State can't come close to that. And if GS lose both KD and Boogie, they're looking at a very different team with little financial resources to replace either other than the MLE.

Steph, Klay, Iggy, Livingston, Draymond, Looney, Bell, MLE FA is no sure shot at a title.

[LkrFan]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DnUWujtVsAE9oU7.jpg

:toast

[Chris]

:toast

You already have a superstar small forward that can play any position. You need another one? :lol

[LkrFan]

You already have a superstar small forward that can play any position. You need another one? :lol

Yes. Why not?

[spursreport]

:lol People acting like Steph would lead them to the title. He had his true moment in the 2016 NBA Finals with Irving healthy and failed in every way possible. He threw a temper tantrum in game 6 and then went like 6-17 in game 7 of the finals including all those critical bricks in the 4th quarter plus Kyrie shitting all over him on that game winner hence why they got Durant. It’s over for the Warriors once they get eliminated and implode this Summer. They bled last year against the Rockets and they are on borrowed time now. This is how these trends go in the NBA.

[Spurtacular]

Even if Durant walks the Warriors will still be a legit NBA title contender as long as they have Curry, Green and Thompson on the roster. That's how ridiculously stacked the starting five is for that team now. Durant is nothing more than a ring sealer for that team. If he never signed there the Warriors likely would not have won another championship.

Contender in name only, tbh. Other teams have caught up and figured them out; and they've become overly dependent on Durant.

[Rusty]

assuming KD goes for the Knicks (pretty much a lock)
they give Klaynus the max
sign a decent wingman
maybe re-sign DeMarcus to another 1 year deal (they dont need him either, but it wouldnt hurt)

(a healthy)Steph+Klay+Dray+Kerr+decent role players... this puzzle has never been solved. They WILL win the title. Again.

They would've won in 2016 if Steph wasn't hurt.

They would've won in 2017 regardless.

KD was the reason they went down 3-2 to Houston in the first place.

https://ramar.images.worldnow.com/images/9303886_G.jpg?auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=800