Well folks, petty season is among us. The 2017 NBA season begins Oct. 17 at 8 p.m. with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers taking on Kyrie Irving and the Boston Celtics in a very awkward family reunion. For the second straight year basketball fans are pressed with a question that seems to have a blatantly obvious answer: can anybody stop the Warriors? Despite an eventful offseason, I’m almost sure any able-minded NBA fan would confidently pick the Warriors to win their third title in the last four years.
But before we discuss that, here’s a quick recap of some of the biggest events of the offseason:
The most influential move of the offseason chronicled one of the biggest break-ups in sports history. The basketball universe was left speechless when Kyrie Irving – the same Kyrie who sunk the 3-point shot that sealed game 7 of the 2016 NBA finals – asked to be traded because he wanted to become the face of a team rather than a member of LeBron’s supporting cast. Irving eventually found a home with the Boston Celtics, and the Celtics sent the Cavaliers Isaiah Thomas – the same Isaiah who produced a 33-point, six-assist and five rebound statline a day after his sister was killed in a car crash last year – in game one of their playoff opener. The Cavaliers also received Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and a 2018 first round pick. Gordon Hayward also elected to sign with the Celtics and team up with Irving.
Along with adding Isiaiah Thomas, the Cavaliers also brought in former MVP Derrick Rose and reunited LeBron James with his partner in crime, Dwayne Wade.
The Oklahoma Thunder also made headlines by adding Paul George and Carmelo Anthony to Russell Westbrook’s aid, along with also making Westbrook the highest paid player in NBA history with a $233 million deal – a deal which Westbrook waited to sign until Kevin Durant’s birthday. Call it coincidence if you’d like.
Jimmy Butler was reunited with his former coach, Tom Thibodeau, after he was traded to the Timberwolves in exchange for Kris Dunn, Zach LaVine and Lauri Markkanen.
The Houston Rockets did their part to remain a serious contender by trading for Chris Paul and giving James Harden a six year $228 million extension.
Honorable mentions: Paul Milsapp to the Nuggets, Ricky Rubio to the Jazz, Rajon Rondo to the Pelicans, J.J. Reddick to the 76ers, Nick Young to the Warriors, Rudy Gay to the Spurs.
The 2017 NBA offseason was clearly one of the most eventful to date, and yet none of the moves seemed to have even made a threat at the Warriors repeat title campaign. I mean, just think about it. We’re talking about a team that went 67-15 in the regular season and then went on to go nearly undefeated in the playoffs, which was only prevented because the Cavaliers scored a finals record of 86 points in the first half of game four and finished the game with 24 three-pointers.
This team did not lose a single superstar. They lost a couple role players, but easily filled that gap with Nick Young, Omri Cassipi and Jordan Bell. Here’s the scariest part; they didn’t just maintain their superstars, they locked most of them in for the long term. Steph Curry signed a 5-year extension. Finals MVP Kevin Durant signed a 2-year extension. Andre Iguodala signed a 3-year extension. Shaun Livingston signed a 3-year extension. Klay Thompson and Draymond Green’s current contracts both have them locked in until at least 2019. Even Zaza Pachulia and JaVale McGee signed one-year extensions (Prepare the memes.)
The point is, this team has only gotten better – if that’s even possible – and this dynasty will further develop as they continue to play together. Outside of a major injury there’s nothing stopping the Warriors this year, and even with one of their superstars out, they would still be the best candidate for the title. Their biggest competition is still the Cavaliers, and while you can argue that the Cavaliers have improved, there’s nothing about their current roster that implies they can derail the Warriors repeat campaign.
So I will confidently take the Warriors as my pick for the 2017-2018 NBA Champions.
P.S. Giannis Antetokounmpo for MVP.