Grizzlies and Warriors.
Before this season began, absolutely no one could have imagined that the team splitting the Western Conference with the Grizzlies would turn out to be the Golden State Warriors.
After all, the Warriors' image as a "weak team" had long been ingrained in people's minds. Aside from their historic upset of the Mavericks, you could hardly find any Warriors highlights in the 21st century.
Before this season, the Warriors had merely made the playoffs for two consecutive years. No one would associate a team that had only reached the playoffs two years in a row with a word like "championship."
But this season, the growth of this young squad had surpassed everyone's expectations.
Steve Kerr was like a key, unlocking the shackles that had restrained this group of young players.
This youthful force threw the Western Conference into chaos, changing the landscape of the entire West—and even the entire league.
What was more, they had even changed the style of basketball in this era.
Before the Warriors, no one believed shooting alone could kill an opponent. No one believed three-pointers could win games.
Nor did anyone believe that a guard who had suffered a major injury and lacked sufficient physicality and defensive ability could succeed.
But the Warriors' emergence changed those views. Their 66 wins were proof.
Sixty-six wins—the best record in Golden State Warriors history. Yet none of the Warriors players were satisfied with that result. They believed they had yet to truly prove themselves.
Because they were only second in the West, not first! No one would be complacent over finishing second.
If they wanted to prove that they had truly begun to rule the league, the most effective way was to defeat its original rulers.
And those original rulers had barely arrived in Oakland