LOS ANGELES – Whoops, screams, music and a smashing rendition of “Happy Birthday” were so loud in the Lakers locker room they could be heard in the hallways. A hush reigned outside the Golden State locker room as those in attendance assessed what had gone so wrong this season.
To the victor goes the sound. For the slain go an unusually early and gloomy holiday.
The reigning champion Golden State’s free, three-point-oriented style of play changed the NBA and made Stephen Curry a household name. But on Friday night, the team couldn’t muster a final sweeping wave of deep shots and bow to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games in the Western Conference Semifinals.
It marked the first time a West team defeated Golden State in the playoffs during their dynastic run, which began in 2015 with the first of four championships led by Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. But this season has been one of the most difficult of the last decade, marred by long absences of key players, a bewildering inability to win along the way, struggling young players and the fallout from Green losing a teammate, Jordan Poole, before the start of the season. the season hit. started.
“This is not a championship team,” said Golden State Coach Steve Kerr after Game 6, which the Lakers won 122-101. “If it were, we’d move on. So you can look at the year in total and see all the ups and downs, and there were all kinds of things that went through and adversity that hit. But our group stayed together and battled to the end and put in a pretty good run.
But “pretty good” has long been below Golden State standards given the stature of Curry, widely regarded as the greatest shooter in NBA history. And now his team may be facing a return to Earth. It’s the basketball equivalent of facing mortality.
“You’re disappointed and a little shocked that it’s over,” Curry said. “You poured so much into each season, but last year you try to defend and give yourself a chance to progress. It’s a tough way to end the season.”
The series against the Lakers was one of the most highly anticipated playoff matchups in years, with Curry taking on Lakers star LeBron James for the first time since the 2018 NBA Finals at the Cleveland Cavaliers. But this series ultimately failed to live up to the hype, blowing out in four of five games after a thrilling Lakers win in Game 1. Curry and Thompson struggled on Friday, combining to shoot an awful 14 for 47 from the field . Thompson, who has scored just three goals in each of the last three games, said it was “probably the worst shooting run I’ve had in a long time.”.”
Golden State is now facing an uncertain summer; Curry called it “uncharted territory.” With one of the most expensive rosters in the league and a new collective bargaining agreement aimed at curbing big spend, Golden State will likely try to cut costs. It could be a stark transition for the team considering it’s gone from a rudderless middle-of-the-road franchise over the past decade to one of its most financially valuable franchises with Curry at the helm.
“For us it’s an opportunity to take stock of where we are, maintain confidence that we can come back next year and be at this stage,” Curry said.
It may help if they get off to a better start. This season, Green punched fourth-year guard Poole in the face during training camp. TMZ published a video of the punch, which exposed the internal discord of a franchise known for continuity and harmony.
“Each season consists of events. Some are great, some are not,” Green said after Friday’s game. “I think for this team more of the events that are not that great were so public, and you know, that’s not something you normally do. And so the world knows, you know, the tough times that this team has had.
Now Green’s career is at a turning point. He is a four-time All-Star, has a player option for next year and is expected to test free agency. Green had one of his better seasons this year, but he turns 34 in March, and Golden State may be hesitant to offer him a maximum contract. Green has shown a penchant for impulsive behaviour, such as batting Poole or making technical fouls, for which he finished second in the league during the regular season. The termination of his contract is the main domino in a summer of renovations.
“I want to be a warrior for the rest of my life,” Green said Friday. “I want to ride out with the same guys I rode in with.”
This season has been a slog for Golden State. “It felt like we were swimming upstream from the start,” Kerr said.
Golden State started the season 3-7. It finished 44-38 to the West’s sixth seed and had one of the worst road records in the league, at 11-30. Andrew Wiggins, a key contributor to last season’s title fight, missed more than half of the regular season due to an injury and an undisclosed personal issue. A five-time All-Star, Thompson struggled to find his shot in the first third of the season and he’s noticeably slowed down on defense after two major injuries in recent years.
If the 33-year-old Thompson has any doubts about his future at Golden State, or any skepticism that this team can win again, he didn’t show it Friday night. His contract expires after next season.
“I can tell you, we gave everything we had,” he said. “But I believe we still have greatness in our future.”
Golden State will also have to decide what to do with the young players it has been trying to develop in its pursuit of a championship – a path that has been criticized for putting too much strain on 35-year-old Curry. Poole, 23, struggled mightily in the playoffs, a problem considering Golden State signed him with a contract extension for four years in October worth up to $140 million. Other young players, such as Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, both 20, have been in and out of the lineup all season.
In addition, the contract of Bob Myers, the team’s general manager for the last decade, ends this year. It could be another architect to take the dynasty to the next stage.
If there was one bright spot for Golden State this season, it was the most appealing character: Curry. He played some of the best basketballs of his career – which meant he was one of the best basketballs anyone has ever played. In the first round of the playoffs, Golden State faced the third-seeded Kings in Sacramento for a deciding Game 7. Curry scored 50 points—the most ever in Game 7—and hit seven 3-pointers. It was a reminder of the magic that had made his teams so great.
But Curry said on Friday that reaching the conference semifinals was not a “moral victory”.
“There’s a lot of pride in what we’ve achieved,” he said, “but there’s also an understanding that it’s not good enough.”