The Golden Sate Warriors, once an inevitable dynasty set to rule basketball without a legitimate challenger for years, are now something quite different. After losing to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers at the tail end of their historic 73-9 season, there’s a bit of tarnish and bitterness to them, a welcome cigarette stain to the flawless gloss they enjoyed all year, and it makes them a more interesting title contender going forward.
Klay Thompson isn’t ready to let go of the dream, though. “We feel like we’re still the best team in the world and we let that slide,” Thompson said Monday. “So it hurts right now. I can’t tell you when the disappointment’s gonna fade, but it will.”
The disappointment, rather than fading, will likely internalize, as it tends to do with teams so very close to championships, and add an edge to all that they do. As amazing as the Warriors were all season, there was a certain emptiness to them in the Finals, a seeming lack to understand the gravity of the moment they were in. After this loss, that probably won’t happen again, and so long as Golden State wisely addresses their fringe roster issues this summer, we should be in for some more world-class basketball.
