The Golden State Warriors are without question the NBA’s latest dynasty. Having won three of the past four NBA titles, Steve Kerr and Co. are likely going to win a fourth in a five-year span when June comes calling.
As such, the Warriors have been compared to the likes of the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers and the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls teams of the 1990s.
Though, if we were to ask former Lakers great and current team president Magic Johnson, Golden State has not yet reached that level of greatness.
“It’s an achievement to win 73 games, no question,” Johnson told The Washington Post recently. “But that doesn’t mean that (Michael) Jordan’s Bulls teams weren’t as good as that team or my (1980s Lakers teams) weren’t as good.”
Magic is not wrong in that the Lakers of the 80s won five titles while Jordan’s Bulls won six championships in an eight-year span. It’s also important to note that Golden State’s 73-win 2015-16 campaign did not conclude in a title after the team lost to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in seven games in that year’s NBA Finals.
Even then, these Warriors have legitimately been more domainant than either the Showtime Lakers or the Bulls of the 90s.
Under the direction of head coach Steve Kerr, Golden State boasts a 301-77 regular season record and are on the verge of a fifth consecutive NBA Finals appearance. That’s something neither the Lakers or Bulls can say.
Apparently, this doesn’t matter to Magic.
“The Warriors are in the discussion, but think about the runs we had — Jordan winning six, us winning five. We dominated a whole decade,” Johnson continued. “The Warriors haven’t done that yet. You have to do those type of things to be the greatest team of all time to me.”
The good news here? Golden State can quiet the skeptics by winning a couple more championships. The bad news for the rest of the NBA — Johnson’s Lakers included — is that it doesn’t look like this dynasty is coming to an end any time soon.
Good luck, Magic.