Warriors dynasty may be toughest act to follow in today’s NBA

As the NBA prepares to crown its eighth different champion in eight seasons, the sustained dominance once displayed by the Warriors appears more difficult than ever to duplicate.

That’s the takeaway from Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area, who examined how dramatically the league has changed since Golden State’s run of three championships and five consecutive NBA Finals appearances from 2015-19.

Many around the NBA believed the Thunder were positioned to become the league’s first repeat champion since the Warriors won back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018. Instead, Oklahoma City was eliminated by the Spurs in the Western Conference finals.

Now it’s San Antonio facing a daunting challenge, trailing the Knicks 2-0 in the NBA Finals despite having generational star Victor Wembanyama on its side.

No matter who ultimately captures this year’s championship, the result will continue a remarkable trend of parity across the league.

The Warriors remain the last team to reach consecutive Finals, let alone repeat as champions.

Former Golden State guard Shaun Livingston, a key contributor throughout the dynasty years, told Poole that the team’s relentless focus played a major role in separating it from the rest of the league.

“Just mindset,” Livingston said. “We wanted to win over everything — and be remembered for such. We knew we had a moment, so we could squeeze the juice.”

Of course, talent and timing also mattered.

As Poole noted, Stephen Curry was still playing under one of the NBA’s most team-friendly contracts when he won MVP awards in 2015 and 2016. That financial flexibility, combined with the league’s dramatic salary cap spike in 2016, helped pave the way for the Warriors to sign Kevin Durant and further strengthen an already elite roster.

“That’s a huge reason,” Livingston said.

The league’s current collective bargaining agreement, with its restrictive tax-apron penalties, was largely designed to make it more difficult for teams to stockpile talent in a similar fashion.

As a result, sustained dynasties may be harder to build than ever before.