The newly minted Golden State Warriors superteam has not played one minute on the floor together, but teams are already scheming for their improbable demise. Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson have all said the right things about shared sacrifice for this upcoming season. Even under the contemporary media microscope, ego-driven disagreements are difficult to find in any of the quartet’s career.
But teams around the league have to clutch on to an inkling of hope when it comes to this Warriors squad. According to Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher, one title contender is planning for a Steph Curry departure if the chemistry doesn’t work out in Golden State.
“I’ve been told by one of the league’s title contenders that they hope to poach Curry. They see KD taking the last-minute shots that were once Curry’s domain. Their pitch will be, ‘come to us and you can be the man once more.’ “
Golden State’s crunch time offense — if they even play that many close games — will be an interesting development throughout the regular season. Curry might be fine deferring to KD during the regular season, but the playoffs could be a different story. Durant’s crunch-time chops are second to none, and his ability to draw fouls holds precious currency during last-minute situations. Steve Kerr’s superb management skills will play a key role in ironing out a crunch-time hierarchy, or lack thereof. That said, any team hoping for a rift between Curry and Durant should set their sights on a more attainable goal. Neither player has shown themselves unwilling to share the limelight when the end result is a win.
But hey, a team can dream, right?