Los Angeles Lakers win inaugural NBA Cup

LeBron James recently secured another accolade in his illustrious career by clinching the MVP title in the inaugural In-Season Tournament (IST). Although it may not be the most distinguished MVP trophy he's earned, it is a notable addition to his impressive collection. Throughout the tournament, LeBron played a pivotal role in guiding the Lakers to victory, showcasing remarkable statistics. Across the first six IST games, he averaged 26.8 points, 8.2 assists, and 7.5 rebounds, displaying exceptional shooting percentages of 58.8% from the field and an astonishing 62.5% from beyond the arc. LeBron's standout performances in the knockout rounds solidified his MVP status. Notably, in a crucial game against the Suns, he took control in the fourth quarter, finishing with 31 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists, particularly shining against Kevin Durant.

The Lakers' decisive win over the Pelicans further highlighted LeBron's impact. In just 23 minutes of play, he contributed 30 points on 9-12 shooting, making all four of his three-point attempts and sinking all eight free throws, while also boasting an impressive plus-minus of +36. Despite facing early foul trouble in the Saturday final, LeBron managed to finish with 24 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists on 10-21 shooting. While he may not have been the standout player of the night, his overall performance throughout the tournament unquestionably earned him the MVP honor. This marks LeBron's ninth MVP award in the NBA, adding to his four regular-season MVPs and four NBA Finals MVPs. While this particular trophy may not carry the same weight as some of his other achievements, it is worth noting that he now surpasses Michael Jordan in total MVP awards.

Lakers' Falls Short In Overtime Loss To Celtics

It happened seven games, in Milwaukee, on a night when the Lakers cooked up such a great performance that anything sort of felt possible. The pieces were there. The possibility existed. The Lakers were figuring it out if things could go just right. But here, back in Los Angeles, on Tuesday night, their performance against the Boston Celtics, was a reminder that the NBA doesn’t quite work that way. Sometimes, it’s a little uglier, a little messier to figure out. None of it made sense. Marcus Smart in gold sneakers, Russell Westbrook in green shoes, the Celtics blowing a 20-point lead only to see the Lakers cough up a 13-point advantage in the fourth quarter.

The Lakers slumped and slunk their way through the first 12 minutes against their biggest rival, telling their fans that any emotion they brought with them into the building wasn’t going to be needed. But a furious 18-0 run in the second half flipped the game totally on its head, putting the Lakers in front while the Celtics chased. But Davis missed two key free throws, the Lakers’ offense went ice cold in overtime and the Boston Celtics came all the way back to win 122-118 in overtime a classic game in the team’s regular-season history but a brutal finish considering the position the Lakers were in after coming all the way back. Davis had 37 points and 12 rebounds, James had 33 nine rebounds and nine assists and Westbrook had 20 points and 14 rebounds off the bench. But, led by Tatum’s 44, it wasn’t enough. The loss, like that win against the Bucks, showed the Lakers could credibly fight with the NBA’s best. But unlike the game in Milwaukee, the Lakers’ flaws were too evident early as the Celtics easily pushed ahead early. It seemed like the latest piece of information that would make the Lakers’ next move murky. Everything that’s happened this season up to and including their 27th game of the season Tuesday has been to make it clear whether this roster is worth investing into or not – and that 20-point early deficit joined some big chunks of the season, where that answer seemed like an obvious “No.” Injuries and consistency issues for James and Davis were enough to dampen even the most optimistic. Supporting cast growing pains could easily have been assigned to lack of talent as much as they could have to fit or role. And the obvious roster questions – they led to obvious issues. Critics of the Lakers’ guard-heavy roster this offseason said they were too small. Tuesday, unsurprisingly, they got beat-up on the glass and shot over on the perimeter. Critics also pointed to the roster imbalance – the necessity for all three of the team’s stars to play well because so much of the team’s available money was committed to the peak of the roster (leaving the base to be made up of players signed with roster exceptions). And for as much the Lakers’ win in Milwaukee could ease those concerns, they were back in the foreground again Tuesday with James and Davis giving the Lakers a lot and the supporting class scuffling to make an impact around them in the first half. But like so much with the Lakers this season, figuring out what would happen next was big mystery. At shootaround Tuesday morning, James said the game against the Celtics would be one of their “biggest tests.” “A lot of great teams in our league and they happen to be one of them,” James said. “That first game off a road trip is always tough so it’s good when you’ve got to be even more locked in with a team that you know is really good.” The Lakers, of course, got off to a slow start. The Celtics, fresh off a blowout loss to the Clippers the night before and ending a long roadtrip, played with an unmatched energy early. They scored on easy layups, opening things up from the three-point line where they quickly got hot. Jayson Tatum, who had struggled some over the Celtics’ last three games, started to just shoot over the defenders in front of him. But if it was predictable that the Lakers would open the game carrying some of the road still with them, it was probably as sure of a bet that the road would catch up with Boston, too. The Lakers defense slowly tightened after allowing 37 first-quarter points, absolutely smothering Boston for huge chunks of the second half as the Lakers turned a 20-point deficit into a 13-point lead in the fourth. But Tatum re-heated, pushing Boston closer and closer as the Celtics started their sprint to the finish. The Celtics closed to within two on a Marcus Smart triple and tied the game on a Tatum jumper after Davis’ misses – forcing overtime. By then, the Lakers tank was empty and any talk of them having figured it all out went silent.

Showtime Welcomes Former ESPN Reporter Rachel Nichols

Rachel Nichols will contribute to multiple programs and projects from Showtime Basketball across multiple platforms,” per the network. She also appeared on the video podcast All the Smoke With Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson to announce the move. Nichols covered the NBA for ESPN since joining the network in 2004, but she stirred controversy last year when private comments she made about former colleague Maria Taylor leaked, implying that Taylor, who is Black, only got to host ESPN’s NBA Finals coverage because the network was “feeling pressure about” their “crappy longtime record on diversity.” Nichols apologized, but was later removed from the network’s NBA coverage, with her daily news show The Jump being cancelled as well. (Taylor left ESPN soon after to join NBC Sports.) The veteran NBA reporter and host left ESPN in January after comments she had made in a private phone call were published in The New York Times, sparking controversy at the sports TV juggernaut.

In the conversation with Adam Mendelsohn, an adviser to Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James and James’ agent, Rich Paul, Nichols sought advice about fellow ESPN NBA reporter Maria Taylor being selected to host NBA Countdown, the channel’s key pre- and postgame program, during the NBA Finals. “If you need to give her more things to do because you are feeling pressure about your crappy longtime record on diversity – which, by the way, I know personally from the female side of it – like, go for it,” Nichols said. “Just find it somewhere else. You are not going to find it from me or taking my thing away. I just want them [ESPN] to go somewhere else it’s in my contract, by the way; this job is in my contract in writing.” The conversation took place amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, with Nichols and other ESPN talent were not working out of the channel’s studios. Nichols made the call from a hotel in the NBA “bubble” it had set up. It also happened in the wake of the protests tied to the murder of George Floyd, with many companies Disney included reacting to the racial reckoning it sparked. Unbeknownst to Nichols, an ESPN employee recorded her comments and shared them internally, before they ended up in the Times. Nichols subsequently apologized to Taylor, and ESPN chief Jimmy Pitaro sent employees a memo promising to do a “deep dive” on the company’s diversity and inclusion efforts. “We respect and acknowledge there are a variety of feelings about what happened and the actions we took,” Pitaro wrote in the memo of the Times story. “The details of what took place last year are confidential, nuanced and complicated personnel matters. But understand this we have a much better story than what you’ve seen this week.” Ultimately, Nichols was removed from ESPN’s NBA coverage, and her daily show The Jump was canceled. Taylor subsequently left ESPN for NBC Sports, where she contributes to its Olympics and NFL coverage. Nichols will address her departure from ESPN for the first time in an episode of Showtime Basketball’s video podcast All the Smoke With Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson being released Friday. And at Showtime, she will once again be able to produce content for basketball fans familiar with her work over the past 25 years. “We are delighted to welcome Rachel Nichols to the Showtime Basketball family,” said Brian Dailey, senior vp sports programming and content for Showtime Networks. “Rachel brings unmatched journalistic credibility, great familiarity with our roster and a work ethic that will take us to another level.”

LeBron James Agrees to a Two-Year Extension With LA Lakers

LeBron James has inked a two-year $97.1 Million USD contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers that includes a player option for the 2024-25 season. All thanks to a 15% trade kicker that is integrated into the deal, the four-time champion is officially the highest-paid player in NBA history as he’s earned a staggering $532 million USD in guaranteed money.

Despite the fact that James will be turning 38 in the middle of the 2022-2023 season, the perennial All-Star has shown zero signs of slowing down, and this investment on the Lakers’ behalf simply goes to show the supreme confidence that the organization has in him to be the franchise’s centerpiece. Last season, he was sidelined due to a handful of injuries that resulted in him only suiting up for 56 games. This was a big factor in the Lakers missing the playoffs, but he still managed to rack up the stat sheet with averages of 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists. Whether or not James can lead the storied franchise to another NBA Finals victory remains to be seen, but with a healthy roster and him being the astounding floor leader that he is, there’s always a shot.

Golden State Warriors Is The NBA 2022 Champions

The Golden State Warriors headed into TD Garden on Thursday night and beat the Boston Celtics 103-90, to win the 2022 NBA finals. Their Game 6 victory was a dominant performance in hostile territory highlighted by an early 21-0 run which effectively secured the Warriors their fourth championship in the last eight years. The contest had looked very different early on. The Celtics began the game by going on a 14-2 tear, and they briefly looked like they would force a decisive Game 7 in San Francisco. But the Warriors countered with a run of their own, eventually ending the first quarter with a five-point lead. Things would escalate from there.

The Warriors held Boston scoreless for the first two minutes of the second quarter as Golden State rained three-pointers down on their hapless opponents. By the time the blitz was over, the Warriors had put together a 21-0 streak, the biggest such run in the finals in 50 years. The Celtics, meanwhile, were forced to hope they had one more dramatic comeback in them. By halftime, the Celtics were down 15 points, a not insurmountable task given their track record of comebacks in these playoffs. The Warriors, however, refused to budge. A Stephen Curry three halfway through the third quarter gave them a 22-point lead that effectively ended the game and secured Curry the first finals MVP award of a career that will end with his enshrinement in the Hall of Fame. To Boston’s credit, they refused to lie down, even cutting down the Golden State lead to eight midway through the third quarter. They couldn’t get any closer however: the Celtics had dug themselves too deep a hole, too early, against too formidable an opponent. These finals were billed as a battle between youth and experience, and it’s safe to say that experience won out. Throughout the series, the Warriors capitalized on Boston turnovers – the Celtics committed 22 in Game 6 alone – and mental mistakes. “It’s part of a championship pedigree, our experience. We built this for 10-11 years,” said Curry after the game. “That means a lot when you get to this stage.” Even though Golden State fell behind 1-2 to start the series, they fought back to win three straight, two of them on the road, against a team that had not lost back-to-back games the entire postseason. Curry, who scored 34 in the deciding game, was brilliant for most of the series, a slight blip in Game 5 aside. His finals MVP was no lifetime achievement award: the turning point of the series came with Curry’s 43-point performance in Game 4. These were his finals. “Beginning of the season no one thought we would be here … it’s very surreal,” said Curry. It was easy to understand his joy: the Warriors finished with the worst record in the NBA just two seasons ago. Part of the reason for that slump were injuries to Curry and his long-time teammate Klay Thompson. “It’s crazy, I’m on Cloud 109 right now,” said Thompson, who missed most of the last two-and-a-half years through injury before returning to help his team to victory. “ It was dog days, a lot of tears shed ... You knew it was a possibility, but to see it in real time … It’s crazy.” The Warriors now have seven NBA titles, one more than the Chicago Bulls. Only the Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers (17 each) have more. This team are not the most accomplished Warriors roster to have won the title but, after a tough few years, they may be the happiest.

LIVE UPDATES: Warriors vs Celtics, Game 3 Odds and Prediction

As the series shifts to Boston, the Celtics shoot for a bounce-back win, while the Warriors aim to ride on the momentum of their Game 2 blowout. Golden State has been the better team for the lion's share of the series. The Warriors have out-scored the Celtics on the whole, and aside from the fourth quarter of Game 1, things have gone according to plan for Stephen Curry and company. Defense was at the forefront in Game 2, with the Celtics scoring only 89.8 points per 100 possessions. Golden State is holding Boston to 16.5 free throw attempts per game in the series, and the Warriors are averaging 11.5 steals per contest, generating fast break opportunities as a result. The Celtics are also shooting only 42.5 percent from two-point range in the first two games, and Boston was credited with only one field goal at the rim in Game 2.

From there, the Warriors are undeniable on offense, posting the No. 1 offensive efficiency mark in the 2022 NBA Playoffs. The Warriors have a 59.7 percent true shooting clip in the postseason, and Golden State is shooting 41.5 percent from beyond the arc against Boston. Curry is dynamic, averaging 31.5 points per game, converting 46 percent from three-point range in the series, and Golden State is the best passing team in the NBA, leading the league in assist rate during the regular season.

Here are several NBA odds and betting lines for Warriors vs. Celtics:

    Celtics vs. Warriors spread: Boston -3.5
    Celtics vs. Warriors over-under: 212 points
    Celtics vs. Warriors money line: Boston -160, Golden State +140
    Celtics vs. Warriors tickets: See tickets at StubHub
    BOS: The Celtics are 13-7 against the spread in playoff games
    GS: The Warriors are 10-8 against the spread in playoff games

NBA and Louis Vuitton Collab for a New Accessories Collection

Louis Vuitton‘s collaborative portfolio expanded into the hoops division once it solidified a partnership with the NBA in 2020. And since then, the French luxury house has teamed up with the pro basketball league on various initiatives including footwear, apparel, a mini hoops set and a trophy case for the champions, and now the duo has reconnected to introduce a fresh batch of leather goods.

 

Lined up in this assemblage is a backpack, keep-all, wallet and a smaller-sized duffle bag. Each piece comes luxuriously fashioned with a bold blue leather that’s adorned with tonal monogram patterns. Silhouettes of a basketball that bear the LV logo inside also grace each product and come styled with red and white accents to appropriately channel the aesthetic of the NBA logo. More contrast is also visible through the straps as they are fitted with solid black as well as the hardware which shows up with metallic gold exteriors. You can find the range releasing via Louis Vuitton on June 2, the first day of the 2022 NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and the Boston Celtics. Prices are $4.6K USD for the backpack leather keep-all for about $4.3K USD for the leather keep-all, $650 USD for the wallet and $1.7K USD for the travel bag.

New Balance KAWHI 2 Goosebumps Is Revealed

Whether or not Kawhi Leonard will see any playing time in the NBA postseason still remains to the be seen, but while he spends time away from the hardwood he’s ramping up his initiatives with New Balance for his signature line. Halloween is still several months away, but the two-time champion is getting a head start on the celebration with the unveiling of his KAWHI 2 “Goosebumps” colorway.

The mid-cut basketball sneakers are fashioned with vibrant accents that are often associated with the October 31st celebration. Bold green hits that are reminiscent of slime stand out the most as they dress up the collars, interior lining, tongues, New Balance branding on the lower heels, mountainous forefoot mold and the tongue branding that spells out “Kawhi” in Goosebumps-inspired font. The lateral heels sport dead tree graphics to further express its spooky aura and pumpkin orange notes poke out through the front and back parts of the midsoles as well as the heel stripes. If you’re interested in adding these to your rotation, note that they’ll be dropping on April 20 via New Balance and Foot Locker.

Boston Celtics Sends Kemba Walker to OKC Thunder

The Celtics are bringing Al Horford back, trading point guard Kemba Walker to Oklahoma City for the five-time All-Star on Friday in Brad Stevens' first major move since he moved from the Boston bench to the front office. Boston will also send the No. 16 overall draft pick and a 2025 second-rounder to the Thunder and receive 7-footer Moses Brown and a 2023 second-round pick in return. Oklahoma City now holds 19 first-round draft picks over the next seven years. Horford returns to Boston and gives the Celtics the frontcourt presence they've lacked since he left two seasons ago.

The 6-foot-9 was forward was a member of the NBA All-Defensive team with the Celtics in 2017-18 while also posting the best assist numbers of his career. Stevens coached Horford for three seasons and says he played a “critical role” while in Boston. "His ability to elevate teammates with his experience and leadership make for a great addition," Stevens said. "We also want to welcome Moses to Boston. He is a promising young player.” Walker joins a team that finished with the second-worst record in the West last season but showed potential with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who led the Thunder with 23.7 points per game, and Lu Dort, who averaged 14 points and was one of the league’s best defensive guards. Walker, 31, is guaranteed more than $73 million over the next two seasons. But after helping the Celtics reach the Eastern Conference finals in the NBA bubble last season the four-time All-Star he was limited by knee injuries to 43 games in 2021; he missed the last two games of the first-round playoff loss to the Brooklyn Nets. Walker's departure means Boston will rely more heavily on All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown for scoring. Without further moves, it would also leave Marcus Smart and Payton Pritchard as the team's main options at point guard. But swapping his salary for Horford's will save the Celtics $9 million. “Kemba is a true professional and a great teammate and player,” Stevens said. “I want to thank him for his tremendous impact, and the positive contribution he’s made both to the Celtics and the city of Boston.” After playing his first nine seasons in Atlanta, Horford signed with Boston as a free agent in 2016 and led the team to the conference finals in his first two seasons. But he opted out after three seasons to go to Philadelphia, then the 76ers flipped him to the Thunder after one year. Horford, 35, averaged 14.2 points and 6.7 rebounds this season, but he played just 23 games before Oklahoma City shut him down in late March to take a look at younger players — including Brown. “Thank you to ... the entire Thunder organization for their professionalism during my time in Oklahoma City,” Horford tweeted. “While it was short, it was first class all the way and me and my family are extremely thankful and appreciative.” Brown, 21, was a first-team All-G-League selection this season, and the Thunder saw enough to call him up and award him a multiyear deal. The 7-footer averaged 8.6 points and 8.9 rebounds and tied a team record with 23 rebounds against the Celtics this season. “As soon as he got his opportunity, he really embraced it," Horford said during the team's exit interviews. "He took it by storm. Playing in this league is not easy, night in and night out to have to prepare, everything that it takes, and I felt like he was up for the challenge.”

Bulls’ Michael Jordan’s life foreshadowed modern day stars’ insane fame

Current Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was a huge part of the Chicago Bulls dynasty in the 1990’s, as depicted in ESPN’s “The Last Dance” docu-series. Recently, the former Bulls guard opened up about one of the things he’s learned from watching the documentary. Kerr focused on Michael Jordan’s star power and how this prevented him from basically being able to live his life — something that Kerr believes has transcended to majority of the players in the NBA today.

“I think the thing you get a good sense of watching the documentary is how different Michael’s life was compared to the rest of us,” Kerr said of his time with the Bulls, via ESPN’s Nick Friedell. “Everybody else could at least go out, go enjoy themselves, get away from it. All you had to do was escape the hotel.

“But Michael just couldn’t go anywhere, and I think that’s really being captured well. So I imagine it’s similar in some regards to some of the stars today and how they feel being confined to their hotel rooms or to their homes.”

Last Sunday’s episodes showed how Jordan was a prisoner of his own hotel room. According to Kerr, this simply wasn’t the case for the rest of the players on the Bulls team at that time.

Times have changed, though, and with the advent of the internet and social media, it’s as if every player in the league is already experiencing the same type of confinement Jordan went through during the peak of his popularity, albeit in varying degrees.

‘NBA 2K21’ release date rumors: This young, fan-favorite from the Mavericks could star in the next game’s cover

The basketball star chosen to be on the cover of the new “NBA 2K” iteration will always be one of the most exciting aspects of the franchise. Choosing who gets to be the face of the game every year might not be an easy task, though, considering the NBA has the best players around the world.

‘NBA 2K21’ cover star: Who’s going to be the face of the game?

Even before 2K Games unveils the “NBA 2K21” cover, fans likely have their favorites already. And most basketball spectators and video game players might agree that the young Dallas Mavericks guard, Luka Doncic, could be one of the right picks.

At 21, Doncic is in his second year of playing in the NBA and has broken records previously held by other basketball greats such as Michael Jordan and LeBron James. The Slovenia native surpassed Jordan’s record last December after scoring at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists for each event in 18 consecutive games.

Earlier in 2019, Doncic moved passed James’ record and became the only teenage player to ever put out a 30-point triple-double in an NBA game. Before the regular season 2019-20 got postponed, he was averaging 28.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 8.7 assists. If on-court performance and level of consistency are some credentials to be chosen as the “NBA 2K21” cover star, Doncic has to be a frontrunner.

However, as mentioned, there are plenty of talented players in the NBA, both among veterans and youngsters. Some other fan-favorites who also deserve to be the face of “NBA 2K21” are Trae Young and Zion Williamson. While the latter arrived late in the season, he immediately proved the doubters why he was no. 1 pick of the New Orleans franchise in 2019.

‘NBA 2K21’ release date, Legend Edition cover: What to expect

If 2K Games decides to have Doncic, Young, or Williamson in the cover, they are likely to be in the “NBA 2K21” Standard Edition. The Legend Edition is usually reserved for retired players who have once been icons of the league. Many fans are rooting to have Kobe Bryant back as another way to pay tribute for the late Los Angeles Lakers star. But there is also a chance that Vince Carter could land in the Legend cover as season 2019-20 has been announced to be his final year in the league.

As for the release date of “NBA 2K21,” nothing is set in stone yet. While it is still likely for the game to be launched in September, as usual, fans should also hold out on a small chance it could be slightly delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Celtics’ Jayson Tatum reveals the team he initially wanted to be drafted by

After just one season at Duke, Jayson Tatum announced that he would be entering the 2017 NBA Draft. In a move that some questioned, Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge traded the team’s No. 1 overall pick to the Philadelphia 76ers, hoping that Tatum would still be on the board at No. 3 overall  and he was.

Things have worked out well for both sides. However, as part of a recent appearance on the All The Smoke podcast with former players Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes, the young Celtics star revealed that he was eyeing another team.

As Jay King passes along, Tatum wasn’t sure if he would see a lot of playing time with the Celtics, who had just finished the 2016-17 campaign with the No. 1 record in the Eastern Conference (53-29). Instead of Beantown, the Missouri native had his eye on the Phoenix Suns:

Tatum has become a key member of the Celtics’ rotation, and his numbers have improved with each passing season. Now in his third campaign with Boston, he’s averaging 23.6 points on 44.8 percent shooting (39.8 percent from beyond the arc), 7.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.4 steals in 34.6 minutes per outing.

Like many other players around the NBA landscape, Tatum is doing his best to stay in shape during the hiatus brought about by coronavirus pandemic. As part of his appearance on the podcast, he noted that he just got a hoop and has been working out in his garage:

The NBA decided to suspend the 2019-20 regular season back in March due to ongoing concerns with the virus. At this point, it’s not clear when (or if) play will resume this year. Some officials around the league are hoping that games can be played at a later date.

The Celtics entered the hiatus with a 43-21 record.

Steve Kerr settles 73-9 Warriors, 72-10 Bulls debate

A debate has been raging on as to who would win between the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors and the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls ever since the former broke the latter’s 72-win season record. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, who was part of the ’96 Bulls team as a player, finally settled it once and for all.

The 54-year-old point guard turned tactician claimed that the Chicago Bulls team led by the GOAT Michael Jordan would have had the edge against 73-win Dubs squad under his command.

Steve Kerr made the admission in the latest episode of ESPN’s 10-part docuseries “The Last Dance” which aired on Monday. After a painful playoff exit the year prior in his return to basketball, Jordan towed the Bulls to an unprecedented 72-10 regular season record. That greatness carried into the postseason when they defeated the Seattle Supersonics in the Finals six games for their fourth title in franchise history.

The Bulls record seemed untouchable since then with no team coming close to reaching at least 70 wins. The record stood until the 2015-16 season, when the explosive Warriors squad bannered by fiery shooters Steph Curry and Klay Thompson laid waste to the competition. With Draymond Green getting the job done on the other end, the Dubs tied the Bulls record with one game remaining to spare.

Under Kerr’s watchful eye, the Dubs eclipsed Jordan and company’s record and notched a 73-9 record on April 13, 2016. However, that squad failed to defend their title that year as they squandered a commanding 3-1 advantage to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Finals.

To this day, most pundits and fans alike agree with Kerr’s opinion, claiming that the Warriors’ inability to win it all that year somehow tainted their legacy.