Is the dynasty over if Warriors lose to Lakers? It’s complicated
Golden State Warriors have a challenging offseason looming, and those
big questions are now closer than ever
>Golden State Warriors’ Klay Thompson (11), Golden State Warriors’
Draymond Green (23) and Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry (30) look
at a replay in the third quarter of their NBA game against the Phoenix
Suns at Chase Center in San Francisco on Jan. 10, 2022. (Ray Chavez/Bay
Area News Group)
By SHAYNA RUBIN | srubin@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: May 10, 2023 at 5:11 a.m. | UPDATED: May 10, 2023 at 1:43 p.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2023/05/10/is-the-dynasty-over-if-warriors-lose-to-lakers-its-complicated/

SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors haven’t had to confront looming questions
about the fate of the organization yet. Hope that the championship core
could propel a legitimate title run kept uncomfortable truths at bay.

Down 3-1 to the Los Angeles Lakers, the levees are one loss away from
breaking. Wednesday night’s Game 5 at Chase Center won’t be the
Warriors’ first elimination game this postseason, but the chance they’ll
mount a three-win comeback feels slim given disappointing performances
from everyone not named Steph Curry.

There’s plenty of hope within the Warriors locker room that they can
rattle off a few wins and maybe send this California rivalry series to a
Game 7 — which would be also played on the defending champs’ home court.
Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green have plenty of experience with
3-1 series records.

This series sets up a redemption for those three to pay LeBron James
back for the infamous 3-1 lead they blew in the 2016 Finals. They can
also draw on their experience coming back 3-1 against Kevin Durant’s
Oklahoma City Thunder in the ’16 Western Conference Finals, and when it
looked like they could do the same in the 2019 NBA Finals against
Toronto before Thompson tore his ACL.

But if the Warriors lose one more time to the Lakers, it’ll open up
debate: Is this the end of the Warriors’ dynasty? The answer, no matter
how this series ends, is simple: The dynasty isn’t dead until Curry is
done. Golden State faces a more complex question, instead: What needs to
change to make another run?

The repeater luxury tax has made the Warriors’ projected payroll to be
nearly $100 million over the cap with harsher free agency penalties
involved for it heading into next season. If the season disappoints, the
Warriors front office may see a need to switch things up not just for
money purposes, but to change the dynamic of a team that’s become a
little stale.

Here are a few ways the current roster — and front office — can change.

- Does the core change?

Green, Thompson and Curry have been a package deal over the Warriors’
decade of success. But expiring contracts and new contract demands might
spell the end of the Big 3.

Trade rumors have swirled around Green since he punched Jordan Poole
before the season began. He can opt-in to his $27.5 million player
option for next season or both sides can come to terms on an extension.
If the Warriors and Green can’t come to terms, Green could opt out and
sign elsewhere for the money he’s looking for.

Thompson will earn $43.3 million in the final year of his contract next
season. The Warriors and Thompson may agree on an extension, but he
could technically be on the trading block.

The Warriors wouldn’t move either unless they had a deal in place for
players that could replace Thompson or Green’s production, a tall task
given Green’s game-changing defense and playmaking next to Curry and
Thompson’s history as one of the best shooters of all time.

- Will they trade Jordan Poole?

At age 23, Poole has shown both tremendous promise and drawn plenty of
concern around his play. He earned a four-year, $128 million extension
this offseason after a breakout season that included a stellar playoff
performance in 2022.

Poole played all 82 games this season, his work ethic never in question.
But his play took a step back this year, including a troubling
disappearance in the playoffs. Poole’s future with the Warriors may be
dependent on Thompson’s future. But he’s been benched in big moments and
gotten outwardly upset over his playing time — so it’s not out of the
realm that Golden State looks to move him in the offseason.

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- Bob Myers and Steve Kerr

Rumors have swirled that general manager Bob Myers could be on his way
out of Golden State after 12 years after his contract expires this
offseason.

The core and coach Steve Kerr preach that none of their four
championships would have happened without Myers, who has been the main
builder in four championship teams — key signings and trades involved
bringing Kevin Durant and Andrew Wiggins aboard.

There’s a chance Myers and the Warriors don’t agree on an extension
after the season ends and he walks — to who knows where? That might
upset some of the mainstays as it would signal a huge change up top.

It should also be noted that Kerr is entering the final year of his
contract, which ESPN reported to be expiring after the 2023-24 season.

--
Shayna Rubin | General Assignment Sports Reporter
Shayna Rubin is a Bay Area News Group sports reporter for The Mercury
News and East Bay Times. She covered the Oakland A's from 2019 to 2021
and, most recently, the Golden State Warriors' championship run in 2022.
Shayna is a San Francisco native. She is a graduate of San Francisco
State University with a BA degree in journalism and a MA degree in
broadcasting and electronic communication arts.