In an interview with SI in February 2015, Charles Barkley was asked about the Golden State Warriors and their potential to win the title that year. Known to be a straight shooter, Barkley expressed his doubts about Stephen Curry’s team, reasoning that the Warriors were “too small” to be serious title contenders.
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Chuck was, of course, speaking based on what was the norm till then. Little did he know that the season would herald a new era in the NBA. And that Curry and the Warriors would be the engines of that change.
“I do not think they can win it all. I think they are too small. I don’t think you can win a championship shooting jumpers,” Barkley had said.
Most people back then, including Barkley, were sure the Warriors would lose steam against a physically dominant team.
“Their two best players are guards and I don’t think you can make enough jump shots in a seven-game series against a really good team,” Barkley added.
The Warriors were not playing the traditional game. The heavy reliance on shooters and lack of center play would ultimately bring about their downfall, felt Barkley.
During the interview, he praised the OKC Thunder. Chuck believed OKC would cruise past the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs, claiming that no player on GSW could guard Russell Westbrook. And if one of their guards tried, they’d be in foul trouble.
Well, the OKC failed to even qualify for the playoffs, enduring an injury-riddled season that saw Kevin Durant play merely 27 games. Role players like Andre Roberson and Serge Ibaka missed extended periods as well. Four months after the interview, the Warriors lifted their first of four titles of the Curry era.
Curry’s Warriors proved Sir Charles wrong
The Warriors finished the 2014-15 regular season with a 65-17 record which catapulted them to the first seed. It was also an MVP season for Curry. So the team had no reason to doubt that they were capable of winning the Championship.
They met the New Orleans Pelicans in the first round of the playoffs and swept them in four games. The Warriors then faced the Memphis Grizzlies in the Conference semifinals. They closed the series in six games, relying on the same set-up that Barkley doubted months ago.
The Warriors then defeated the Houston Rockets 4-1 to win the Conference title and advance to the Finals.
The title series was expected to be a tough matchup as the Warriors were facing LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs were, however, banged up and missed both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love for a majority of the series.
Steve Kerr and his crew took advantage of this and thwarted a valiant effort from the Cavs, beating them in six games to hoist the franchise’s first trophy since 1975.
The entirety of the Playoff run by the Warriors proved every statement from Barkley wrong.
Three out of the four teams they faced in the postseason had a frontcourt All-NBA first-teamer as their best player. Marc Gasol for the Grizzlies, Anthony Davis for the Pelicans, and LeBron James leading the charge for Cleveland.
Yet, a team whose top 4 were 6’6 and below came out on top. The game has not been the same since then.
