The mid-2010s basketball landscape was a power struggle between a few teams in the west and one team in the east. While superstars were evenly distributed in the west, the east was dominated by LeBron James. OKC had Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, The Rockets just got James Harden, and Golden State had the Splash Brothers.
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It was becoming a regular sight to see Cleveland trample everyone in the east to face off against GSW in the NBA Finals. Memes were floating about how these two teams would be playing every finals series. When the 73-9 Warriors, the best team in history, fell to a god-like display from Bron and Kyrie Irving, the belief grew that we would see LBJ get more rings in Ohio.
And then it all changed. In what many called a snake move, Durant moved to the best team in the NBA. It created shockwaves in every social media sphere, and fans and players alike were shocked. Nobody expected it to happen – the warriors relied on team chemistry more than anything.
Tristan Thompson recalls his initial reaction to the news on Draymond Green’s podcast
Tristan Thompson, playing forward all season during the championship run, was in disbelief when he heard the news. He only had to play Durant two times in the regular season, and he was done. Having achieved what was thought impossible, watching his rivals get stronger was madness.
“You traded one championship for two,” Thompson said to a cackling Green, who knew exactly how TT felt. Everybody felt it was cheating, but the Warriors did nothing illegal. Durant chose on his own, going to the team that beat him to the finals. The landscape of the NBA would have been so different, had he chosen to stay with OKC, or moved to the Celtics.
Thompson faced the brunt of a marauding Durant in the next two years, absolutely making a mockery of him.
Kevin Durant moving to the Warriors changed how teams viewed building rosters
For one, The Cleveland Cavaliers could not take the brunt force of 4 All-Stars, and one borderline all-star in DeMarcus Cousins. They did make it to the finals, while everyone knew the outcome already. Those two years were so demoralizing for Bron, he moved conferences for the first time in his career.
He went to LA, the place he thought would push him to another title. And he was right. He also had to make the Lakers sell their ‘soul’ to win a championship. That move in 2018 paved the way to two more of Durant’s moves, along with 3 of Kyries. Apart from a few teams like the Bucks and the Nuggets, every other team has tried to lure superstars.
“Built, not bought” is a motto car guys are proud of. Bought, not built, the motto of every NBA team that is trying to win.
