5 reasons the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors are the greatest team of all time
1. Greatest playoff run ever
The Golden State Warriors are one of 13 teams to win at least 67 games, they did so with KD missing 20 games, they boast the fourth-best regular season point differential and second-best playoff point differential of all time, and in the third year of an ongoing dynasty, they’d be favored in a hypothetical series against any championship team in NBA history.
As if this weren’t enough, the Warriors have another dominant distinction to their name: The most impressive playoff run the league has ever seen.
With a nearly immaculate 16-1 postseason record, including an NBA-record 15 consecutive wins, the Dubs put together the best win percentage in playoff history.
Warriors finish 16-1, tying the fewest postseason losses by an NBA champion (1983 76ers and 2001 Lakers) pic.twitter.com/1Z7swGNlW4
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 13, 2017
If not for a historically great Cavaliers team playing its best game of the season in Game 4, the Warriors may have become the first team in NBA history to go a perfect 16-0.
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That didn’t happen, and it should be noted that injuries to Jusuf Nurkic, George Hill and Kawhi Leonard made the Dubs’ path to their fifth franchise championship easier to varying degrees.
However, Golden State did what historically great teams are supposed to do, dismantling inferior opponents no matter who was on the floor. Their 16-1 playoff record also trumps the 1971 Bucks (12-2), 1972 Lakers (12-3), 1996 Bulls (15-3) or any of Magic Johnson‘s Lakers or Larry Bird‘s Celtics teams.
They completed a gentlemen’s sweep against the second-greatest player of all time who became the first player to ever average a triple-double in the Finals — yet another testament to how absolutely dominant this Warriors team was.
Let’s rephrase it this way: LeBron James, one of the greatest players of all time, played the greatest Finals series of his legendary career, and it barely even put a dent in Golden State’s path to the Larry O’Brien trophy.
Next: 5 reasons the Warriors will repeat as NBA champions in 2018
All of that matters, and the 16-1 playoff record could be an all-time mark that other teams look up to for a long time. Well, at least until next year’s Golden State Warriors team.