WEBVTT - Episode 7 - Avengers Assemble 0:00:03.789 --> 0:00:06.668 Dubbed Dynasty as a production of iHeartMedia and the NBA. 0:00:07.469 --> 0:00:20.229 Good vision was always in my repertoire, my repertoire, my repertoire, 0:00:20.429 --> 0:00:21.069 my repertoire. 0:00:27.629 --> 0:00:29.749 The internet was so worldwide. 0:00:29.869 --> 0:00:33.229 You congratulations, missus Principessa. 0:00:33.309 --> 0:00:34.868 I love seeing those engagements here. 0:00:34.949 --> 0:00:35.829 That's always special. 0:00:37.789 --> 0:00:40.469 I'm tired, Jared, I want to go eat a sandwich 0:00:40.709 --> 0:00:42.029 and this will be in the past. 0:00:42.109 --> 0:00:43.029 I could call me tail. 0:00:44.109 --> 0:00:45.709 I don't know if I was born for it, but 0:00:45.829 --> 0:00:47.949 I definitely worked my butt off to get to this point. 0:00:50.469 --> 0:00:53.389 And I mean, I guess you could say I was 0:00:53.429 --> 0:00:57.429 born for it. I might go see the swamps or something. 0:00:57.429 --> 0:00:58.789 I'm trying to catch an alligator. 0:00:58.829 --> 0:01:05.109 I don't know, man, I'm not gonna lack a lot. 0:01:05.149 --> 0:01:07.389 I just blanked out ball. 0:01:08.309 --> 0:01:09.348 To see it in real time. 0:01:10.068 --> 0:01:11.709 Oh it's crazy. 0:01:14.428 --> 0:01:17.109 That was a collection of quirk from none other than 0:01:17.188 --> 0:01:20.988 Clay Thompson, the far more eccentric half of the Splash Brothers. 0:01:21.949 --> 0:01:27.429 I'm Israel Gutierrez and this is dubb Dynasty. Clay's is 0:01:27.509 --> 0:01:31.868 a unique NBA existence. His jump shot is one to envy, 0:01:32.469 --> 0:01:36.549 not just for casuals, but even for NBA greats. But 0:01:36.669 --> 0:01:39.228 it's the second most discussed jump shot on his own 0:01:39.268 --> 0:01:43.109 Warriors team. He's considered one of the best two way 0:01:43.188 --> 0:01:46.828 players of his time because his defensive efforts often matched 0:01:46.988 --> 0:01:50.669 or surpassed his offensive output, but he'd make just one 0:01:50.949 --> 0:01:54.549 NBA All Defensive Second Team in his Golden State tenure. 0:01:55.109 --> 0:01:58.429 He's largely considered to have been snugged left off the 0:01:58.629 --> 0:02:02.269 NBA's Greatest seventy five Players of All Time list, Yet 0:02:02.309 --> 0:02:05.669 he was also fortunate to have played alongside teammates who'd 0:02:05.709 --> 0:02:10.228 be considered possibly top ten all time, rarely requiring him 0:02:10.389 --> 0:02:12.428 to carry his team for extended stretches. 0:02:13.788 --> 0:02:15.549 If I could do it all over again, I would 0:02:15.589 --> 0:02:19.269 be Clay. I mean that I want to be Clay. 0:02:20.269 --> 0:02:24.029 He's got it figured out, just wants to play hoop 0:02:24.108 --> 0:02:27.629 and have fun and play with his dog. The most 0:02:27.709 --> 0:02:28.948 low maintenance guy on Earth. 0:02:30.029 --> 0:02:32.668 And while he has saved his Warriors team at times 0:02:33.228 --> 0:02:36.228 and put together some of the more impressive scoring performances 0:02:36.269 --> 0:02:40.428 basketball has ever seen, Clay has always been arguably the 0:02:40.549 --> 0:02:44.268 greatest luxury there's ever been in the NBA. He's the 0:02:44.589 --> 0:02:46.829 second yacht that rarely makes it out of the marine. 0:02:47.309 --> 0:02:50.108 He's the Rolls Royce Phantom that only rolls out of 0:02:50.149 --> 0:02:54.029 the garage when family visits. He's a game six. Savor 0:02:54.589 --> 0:02:58.469 a postgame interview, Jim, He's sixty points in three quarters. 0:02:59.309 --> 0:03:03.228 More on that momentary. But when Clay Thompson wasn't even 0:03:03.549 --> 0:03:08.629 through a championship and another run to the finals was enough, 0:03:21.269 --> 0:03:24.268 last week left you. The Warriors were still experiencing the 0:03:24.388 --> 0:03:26.788 rebound effect of losing a three to one lead in 0:03:26.869 --> 0:03:30.508 the finals to Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. It 0:03:30.788 --> 0:03:33.189 was as much as it could be for a team 0:03:33.228 --> 0:03:36.469 that had just set their regular season winsmark a moment 0:03:36.589 --> 0:03:41.349 of international embarrassment. As a result, the Warriors would attempt 0:03:41.429 --> 0:03:48.669 to woo the biggest free agent available, Kevin Durant, and 0:03:48.869 --> 0:03:51.629 so far, through a series of sales pitches in the 0:03:51.789 --> 0:03:55.708 high Faluton Hamptons, the Warriors had at least contributed to 0:03:55.789 --> 0:04:00.589 the possibility of Durant changing teams. Durant possibly going to 0:04:00.669 --> 0:04:03.909 Golden State was a topic on ESPN's The Jail with 0:04:04.109 --> 0:04:06.629 Rachel Nichols, Zach Lowe and Tracy McGrady. 0:04:08.629 --> 0:04:11.749 I think he's talented enough to bet on a team 0:04:12.189 --> 0:04:15.189 to win a championship, to carry our team to a championship. 0:04:15.229 --> 0:04:18.149 That's the type of talent that he has. Go team 0:04:18.229 --> 0:04:21.909 up with Chris Paul and Los Angeles, Go team up 0:04:21.949 --> 0:04:23.509 with you know, Melo and New York. 0:04:23.589 --> 0:04:24.749 So I go somewhere where at no. 0:04:25.149 --> 0:04:27.109 You team up here, but don't team up there, team 0:04:27.189 --> 0:04:27.868 up in some places. 0:04:27.909 --> 0:04:29.589 And I go to say, team up with a team 0:04:29.669 --> 0:04:31.909 that hasn't won a championship. I mean that will be 0:04:32.069 --> 0:04:34.029 more gratifying for filling. 0:04:35.269 --> 0:04:40.189 And On our nation's Independence Day twenty sixteen, Durant announced 0:04:40.269 --> 0:04:43.789 via The Player's Tribune in an article titled My Next Chapter, 0:04:44.269 --> 0:04:47.469 that he would sign with the Warriors. The article featured 0:04:47.469 --> 0:04:50.269 a photo of Durant in a white sleeveless T shirt 0:04:50.669 --> 0:04:54.549 looking off to the right at nothing in particular. It's 0:04:54.589 --> 0:04:57.389 an image and headline combo that still gets the mean 0:04:57.469 --> 0:05:01.509 treatment to this day. In the article, Durant announced his 0:05:01.629 --> 0:05:05.429 decision to join the Warriors given the level of hatred 0:05:05.509 --> 0:05:08.509 spewed at Lebron James after he chose to leave his 0:05:08.709 --> 0:05:12.868 first organization in free agency in twenty ten. Durant made 0:05:12.949 --> 0:05:16.229 sure to mention his appreciation for the Thunder organization and 0:05:16.349 --> 0:05:20.589 its fans. Durant wrote, quote, it really pains me to 0:05:20.709 --> 0:05:23.388 know that I will disappoint so many people with this choice, 0:05:24.149 --> 0:05:26.229 but I believe I'm doing what I feel is the 0:05:26.349 --> 0:05:28.389 right thing at this point in my life and my 0:05:28.509 --> 0:05:32.988 playing career. It wasn't just thunder fans would feel disappointment. 0:05:33.308 --> 0:05:36.789 Fans of competition would also the idea that a team 0:05:36.949 --> 0:05:39.189 that just set the all time wins record for a 0:05:39.269 --> 0:05:42.469 single season and was just one more win away from 0:05:42.549 --> 0:05:46.428 also winning the championship just added a player who might 0:05:46.509 --> 0:05:49.709 be better than anyone else on the roster. It just 0:05:49.789 --> 0:05:54.669 didn't sit well in the eyes of many. In twenty ten, 0:05:55.109 --> 0:05:58.509 after Lebron signed with the Heat, Jeff Van Gundy predicted 0:05:58.589 --> 0:06:01.389 that Heat team that also had Dwayne Wade and Chris 0:06:01.469 --> 0:06:05.909 Bosch would break the wins record. The Warriors had already 0:06:05.949 --> 0:06:10.149 done that and now added an MVP in his absolute pride. 0:06:10.748 --> 0:06:14.109 The immediate backlash was so strong it felt as if 0:06:14.229 --> 0:06:17.309 Durant was getting attached from all angles, not just his 0:06:17.469 --> 0:06:18.669 former teammates. 0:06:19.909 --> 0:06:22.669 Team and a the news again coming in moments ago, 0:06:22.949 --> 0:06:25.509 Kevin Durant heading two the Golden State Warriors. 0:06:25.829 --> 0:06:27.909 How are you viewing this move from Durant? 0:06:28.389 --> 0:06:30.229 Well, I'm viewing it as the weakest move I've ever 0:06:30.269 --> 0:06:31.988 seen from a superstar playing as simple. 0:06:32.069 --> 0:06:33.109 That's just how I look at it. 0:06:33.269 --> 0:06:36.429 It's not that he's leaving Oklahoma City. If you're not happy, 0:06:36.509 --> 0:06:37.989 then you want to move on and you want to 0:06:38.029 --> 0:06:40.549 grow as a player, or you know, there's nothing wrong 0:06:40.629 --> 0:06:42.589 with that. He's one of the top three players in 0:06:42.669 --> 0:06:45.308 the world. He's a quit essential superstar. He deserves all 0:06:45.349 --> 0:06:48.309 the credits in the world, but the talent that he possesses. 0:06:48.469 --> 0:06:49.509 But the flip side is this. 0:06:49.949 --> 0:06:52.309 They were up three to one in the Western Conference finals, 0:06:52.549 --> 0:06:54.749 not one, not two, but three different times. He was 0:06:54.789 --> 0:06:57.949 forty eight minutes removed from getting to the NBA Finals 0:06:57.988 --> 0:07:01.669 by winning the Western Conference three times. He failed, particularly 0:07:01.829 --> 0:07:04.189 in Game six. And you depart for the team that 0:07:04.308 --> 0:07:06.989 beat you when you're on the cusp of getting to 0:07:07.029 --> 0:07:10.029 the finals yourself ultimately winning the championship with a franchise 0:07:10.309 --> 0:07:12.789 that you've been with since you've come into the NBA, 0:07:13.229 --> 0:07:14.469 I think it's incredibly weak. 0:07:16.389 --> 0:07:20.549 His most famous teammate, Russell Westbrook, did post a response 0:07:20.629 --> 0:07:24.109 on Instagram that would consolidate the nation's thoughts on Durant 0:07:24.469 --> 0:07:29.269 into one sweet, patriotic image. Westbrook posted an image of 0:07:29.349 --> 0:07:33.829 cupcakes decorated for the holiday with the caption Happy Fourth y'all. 0:07:34.549 --> 0:07:38.389 It turns out another former Durant teammate, Kendrick Perkins, used 0:07:38.429 --> 0:07:41.829 to call teammates cupcakes if they were playing soft. The 0:07:41.909 --> 0:07:45.268 cupcake response from Westbrook would be the one Thunder fans 0:07:45.269 --> 0:07:49.029 would cling to. From the outside looking in, it was 0:07:49.109 --> 0:07:52.429 easy to pick sides here. Westbrook was the teammate left 0:07:52.469 --> 0:07:56.349 behind as Durant left to join the big bad favorites. 0:07:57.149 --> 0:08:00.029 Even Slater felt the venom from the Thunder fans after 0:08:00.149 --> 0:08:02.589 he left the Oklahoma to cover the Warriors. 0:08:03.469 --> 0:08:07.549 So much of the Durant backlash felt like you're going 0:08:07.589 --> 0:08:11.029 to the enemy, like the team that really, you know, 0:08:11.229 --> 0:08:13.069 just kind of slayed you. I think there was a 0:08:13.109 --> 0:08:14.789 lot of people at the time that really wanted to 0:08:14.869 --> 0:08:17.309 see Thunder Warriors again the next year. Right, it was 0:08:17.349 --> 0:08:20.669 like but it also I mean, people in the league 0:08:20.749 --> 0:08:22.389 viewed it, and I guess you would say the same 0:08:22.429 --> 0:08:24.349 about the Miami one. But people in the league viewed 0:08:24.349 --> 0:08:25.949 it like, man, you just ruined the league for the 0:08:25.989 --> 0:08:27.909 next four years. We know who's gonna win the title. 0:08:27.949 --> 0:08:30.789 You're gonna be massive favors. In some ways, they were 0:08:30.869 --> 0:08:31.829 kind of proven correct. 0:08:32.469 --> 0:08:35.348 At this point in our NBA experience, the media and 0:08:35.469 --> 0:08:38.389 the public had already learned their lesson about critiquing a 0:08:38.469 --> 0:08:44.189 player's free agency choice too vigorously. The hyperbolic reactions to 0:08:44.309 --> 0:08:47.709 Lebron James leaving Cleveland for Miami taught us to calm 0:08:47.829 --> 0:08:50.149 down a little bit when a player simply exerts his 0:08:50.269 --> 0:08:52.829 own free will and chooses where he wants to work. 0:08:53.589 --> 0:08:57.469 But there was something especially off put about Durant joining 0:08:57.549 --> 0:09:00.189 the enemy that defeated him in the most recent playoffs. 0:09:00.949 --> 0:09:04.709 Forget about an unfair talent advantage for the Warrior. Amateur 0:09:04.789 --> 0:09:09.149 psychiatrists everywhere, we're trying to examine Durant's mentality. Why not 0:09:09.269 --> 0:09:11.349 run it back and try to beat the Warriors after 0:09:11.469 --> 0:09:15.389 being so close in the conference finals? Was Russell Westbrook 0:09:15.469 --> 0:09:18.909 really that difficult to play with? What it really satisfied 0:09:18.989 --> 0:09:22.709 Durant to win a title with this turnkey championship ready team. 0:09:23.509 --> 0:09:26.749 Rachel Nichols has examined the Durant conversation from every angle. 0:09:27.589 --> 0:09:31.829 Upon reflection, she believes Durant's decision isn't a shocking when 0:09:31.829 --> 0:09:34.069 you look back at the circumstances. 0:09:35.469 --> 0:09:37.389 And we all acknowledge it now. And by the way, 0:09:37.469 --> 0:09:39.789 I happen to like Russell Westbrook. I think he'said a 0:09:39.829 --> 0:09:41.709 lot of community stuff people don't give him credit for. 0:09:42.029 --> 0:09:44.229 And I also think the way that he uplifted that 0:09:44.349 --> 0:09:47.869 Thunder team after Kevin left really reset the course of 0:09:47.909 --> 0:09:50.789 the franchise and enabled what is happening now, because without 0:09:50.829 --> 0:09:53.229 that belief he provided for them, I'm not sure that 0:09:53.309 --> 0:09:55.349 they are what is this in our Year of Our 0:09:55.389 --> 0:09:57.629 Lord twenty twenty four to twenty five the title contender. 0:09:58.069 --> 0:10:01.149 But he can wear on you, man, He can be 0:10:01.229 --> 0:10:01.829 hard to play with. 0:10:02.269 --> 0:10:06.709 And also Kevin in a small market that wasn't maybe 0:10:06.789 --> 0:10:09.589 naturally the sus from Texas, but maybe wasn't naturally aware 0:10:09.629 --> 0:10:11.709 and who he saw himself at that stage of being 0:10:11.749 --> 0:10:13.949 an adult year a lot different at that age seven 0:10:14.029 --> 0:10:15.989 years into your career than you are when you first 0:10:16.029 --> 0:10:17.949 came in. And by the way, he started in Seattle 0:10:17.989 --> 0:10:19.709 and then they go to Oklahoma City and all of 0:10:19.749 --> 0:10:23.309 that stuff, So I think his decision to leave Oklahoma 0:10:23.389 --> 0:10:24.869 City is a little separate. 0:10:27.389 --> 0:10:30.349 There was one financial detail that allowed for this to 0:10:30.469 --> 0:10:33.869 even be a conversation. After the NBA signed a new 0:10:33.909 --> 0:10:37.189 television deal in twenty fourteen, the league was set to 0:10:37.309 --> 0:10:41.069 experience a spike in revenue beginning in the twenty sixteen offseason, 0:10:41.709 --> 0:10:44.669 setting up for the largest salary cap increase the league 0:10:44.709 --> 0:10:47.189 had ever seen. There was an attempt by the league 0:10:47.269 --> 0:10:50.309 to avoid the big spike and spread out the revenue 0:10:50.389 --> 0:10:53.749 over multiple years so that more free agents benefit, not 0:10:53.989 --> 0:10:57.749 just the twenty sixteen group. That attempt was rejected by 0:10:57.789 --> 0:11:01.509 the players Association, setting up the possibility of Durant signing 0:11:01.549 --> 0:11:05.229 with Golden State and setting up seemingly endless debate of 0:11:05.949 --> 0:11:08.309 should Durant have even considered the Warriors. 0:11:09.469 --> 0:11:12.509 Here's Nicholas, I think he was ready to be somewhere fun. 0:11:12.789 --> 0:11:15.709 Kevin Durant loves basketball. I think if you know Kevin 0:11:15.749 --> 0:11:17.829 at all, if you followed his career at all, you 0:11:17.869 --> 0:11:19.269 know he says a lot of the time, I just 0:11:19.349 --> 0:11:21.269 want a hoop man. And it's easy to take that 0:11:21.469 --> 0:11:24.269 is a cliche or casually it is the building block 0:11:24.349 --> 0:11:26.429 of who he is. He will get out there with 0:11:26.549 --> 0:11:30.189 a basketball and annette wherever he is, he wants to play. 0:11:30.429 --> 0:11:33.589 He's most comfortable with himself and who he is on 0:11:33.709 --> 0:11:37.349 the court. He just wants to play ball man. And 0:11:37.709 --> 0:11:40.389 it's a little reductive but it's also true, and I 0:11:40.429 --> 0:11:42.429 think the fact that this team was able to offer 0:11:42.509 --> 0:11:44.229 him not only a chance at a title and a 0:11:44.309 --> 0:11:46.469 ring and all the things the public focused on, but 0:11:46.629 --> 0:11:50.069 the chance to have this sort of environment where basketball 0:11:50.229 --> 0:11:51.949 was the main thing and it was supposed to be fun. 0:11:52.309 --> 0:11:54.549 I think that was really appealing for him. On top 0:11:54.589 --> 0:11:56.789 of oh yeah, I could finally win a title, Oh yeah, 0:11:56.869 --> 0:11:58.909 I get to play with Steph, and the fact that 0:11:58.989 --> 0:12:01.869 Steph behaved in a way that, frankly, we just haven't 0:12:01.909 --> 0:12:06.069 seen modern superstar and any sport behave. Willing to say 0:12:06.309 --> 0:12:09.869 to someone who maybe was in some ways, in some ways, 0:12:10.589 --> 0:12:14.069 in some ways better than him in certain areas, to 0:12:14.189 --> 0:12:16.229 come onto the team and be at the very least 0:12:16.269 --> 0:12:19.149 a Coh headliner, I think was remarkable. 0:12:20.749 --> 0:12:23.789 This just didn't fit the story arc that we all projected. 0:12:23.869 --> 0:12:28.749 After the phenomenal twenty sixteen playoffs, the thunder were supposed 0:12:28.749 --> 0:12:32.309 to get another shot at the Warriors. Lebron was supposed 0:12:32.309 --> 0:12:34.389 to have ended the Warriors run the same way he 0:12:34.469 --> 0:12:40.189 stopped Eastern Conference teams from ever starting THEIRS. Teams like 0:12:40.229 --> 0:12:43.269 the Rockets and Grizzlies were supposed to emerge as true 0:12:43.349 --> 0:12:47.549 challengers o West, Durant's choice would eliminate all those as 0:12:47.629 --> 0:12:51.109 possibilities and we would all have to accept the inevitable 0:12:51.509 --> 0:12:57.069 Avengers endgame type finale that was to come. Despite the 0:12:57.189 --> 0:13:01.229 cinematic setup, people hated on Durant for creating leading this 0:13:01.429 --> 0:13:05.269 offensive genius to be on the defense from the start 0:13:05.349 --> 0:13:06.629 of his time in Bothen State. 0:13:07.869 --> 0:13:10.109 Nothing in this league is easy, and I know it's 0:13:10.109 --> 0:13:11.709 going to be ups and down throughout a season. 0:13:11.789 --> 0:13:13.989 I know we expected to be perfect every single day, 0:13:14.029 --> 0:13:15.189 but I know that's not realistic. 0:13:15.509 --> 0:13:18.029 I think the Warriors were so dominant throughout the twenty 0:13:18.109 --> 0:13:22.749 sixteen season. I think the fact that Steph Curry felt 0:13:22.829 --> 0:13:26.469 like a little bit unbreakable and unbeatable, and we just 0:13:26.709 --> 0:13:29.389 as if you're a fan of any other team, you're thinking, 0:13:29.629 --> 0:13:31.909 we just went through a decade of Lebron James doing 0:13:31.949 --> 0:13:36.269 whatever he wanted. I mean, Lebron dismantled what three different 0:13:36.349 --> 0:13:39.749 organizations in the Eastern Conference in the time that he 0:13:39.909 --> 0:13:41.789 was in Cleveland. I mean, you look at the rise 0:13:41.829 --> 0:13:43.709 and ball of the Boston Celtics at that time, or 0:13:43.749 --> 0:13:45.589 the Pacers, or we could talk about the Bulls that 0:13:45.629 --> 0:13:49.389 there's so many teams that the Rafters that he just destroyed, 0:13:49.789 --> 0:13:52.269 and that the feeling among fans was, way, We're about 0:13:52.269 --> 0:13:55.149 to go through this all over again, You're kidding me. 0:13:55.589 --> 0:13:57.269 I think there was a little bit of that. I 0:13:57.429 --> 0:14:00.829 think that this sort of radio talk show host narrative 0:14:01.109 --> 0:14:04.549 of oh wow, you lost, so you're going to go 0:14:04.669 --> 0:14:07.469 join the winner, and it spoke to this idea of 0:14:07.589 --> 0:14:10.549 manliness in some way that caught a lot of fire 0:14:10.709 --> 0:14:12.829 with a lot of people. I think was an ingredient 0:14:12.949 --> 0:14:13.509 in all of that. 0:14:14.629 --> 0:14:17.349 The drama of the season had been removed by this decision, 0:14:17.909 --> 0:14:20.709 so all the dramatics would be focused on Durant and 0:14:20.829 --> 0:14:24.349 his free agency choice. The Warriors would also need to 0:14:24.389 --> 0:14:28.949 adjust their roster to fit Durant. Goneweror Harrison Barnes, Andrew Bogitt, 0:14:29.229 --> 0:14:33.229 Maurice Spates, and Festus A. Zili In were veteran forward 0:14:33.349 --> 0:14:37.469 David West, rookie Patrick mccau and big man Jajah Peculia. 0:14:38.269 --> 0:14:41.429 The veteran center had just experienced his thirteen season in 0:14:41.509 --> 0:14:44.189 the NBA, but before he was able to join the 0:14:44.229 --> 0:14:47.789 star studded Warriors, Peculia was just like the rest of us, 0:14:48.629 --> 0:14:53.149 wondering why Durant made the NBA, possibly the most top 0:14:53.229 --> 0:14:54.389 heavy it had ever been. 0:14:56.469 --> 0:15:00.069 I can tell you how mad I was when Katie 0:15:00.189 --> 0:15:03.949 signed with the Warriors, already amazing team. I lost to 0:15:04.029 --> 0:15:06.709 the final in the finals to Clivement, already great team, 0:15:07.189 --> 0:15:12.109 and guess what breaking breaking news, Katie signs, but I'm gonna. 0:15:12.629 --> 0:15:15.029 I was so mad. I said, who is going to 0:15:15.069 --> 0:15:17.309 beat them? I said, this is not fair. I mean 0:15:18.069 --> 0:15:19.909 my wife, my kids said, Dad, why are you angry? 0:15:19.909 --> 0:15:21.749 I said, it's not fair. It's not fair. I said, 0:15:21.749 --> 0:15:24.709 what Katie just signed with? Like, because my mind is 0:15:24.789 --> 0:15:26.669 like okay, because I was in Dallas. I just had 0:15:26.949 --> 0:15:30.709 my career year in Dallas. I really bonded with Dirk 0:15:30.989 --> 0:15:33.509 and you know Darren Williams and played for coach Carl. 0:15:33.549 --> 0:15:36.229 I said it was great. I really liked it. But 0:15:36.349 --> 0:15:39.309 I was free agent and I didn't care about free agency. 0:15:39.349 --> 0:15:43.309 All I cared about, like why Warriors sign Kevin the 0:15:43.349 --> 0:15:47.869 Red So two days later, so after being mad and disappointing, 0:15:47.989 --> 0:15:51.309 frustrated for forty eight hours, my agents called me because 0:15:51.309 --> 0:15:55.269 I was free agent, so and he goes Zaza. We've 0:15:55.309 --> 0:15:58.349 been working together for a pretty good amount of time, 0:15:58.629 --> 0:16:01.389 and I had a lot of offers for you during 0:16:01.469 --> 0:16:03.829 your career, but nothing like this. 0:16:04.749 --> 0:16:08.389 Peculia had offers from the Trailblazers, Mavericks and of course 0:16:08.469 --> 0:16:12.189 the Warriors. Suddenly his complaint stopped. 0:16:13.789 --> 0:16:16.109 No brainer, that was a lifetime opportunity. 0:16:16.309 --> 0:16:16.709 You know, to. 0:16:18.389 --> 0:16:21.869 Forget about winning it first, like winning is a huge part, 0:16:22.309 --> 0:16:26.629 but just to experience, I need to play with the guys. 0:16:26.669 --> 0:16:31.309 So I just mentioned you know, Steph clay KD Drama 0:16:32.069 --> 0:16:35.829 and the center spot was open. And but you know, 0:16:35.949 --> 0:16:38.069 the like they were very open about, like, you know, 0:16:38.229 --> 0:16:40.589 we want we looking at you as your number one 0:16:40.629 --> 0:16:43.069 option for us to be a starting center. So I 0:16:43.269 --> 0:16:45.829 was joking with my friends. Actually I never made an 0:16:45.829 --> 0:16:47.909 All Star, but hey, there you go. I'm playing with 0:16:47.989 --> 0:16:52.429 the all Stars. So four all stars, I say, and 0:16:53.629 --> 0:16:54.789 right away I told him yes. 0:17:00.469 --> 0:17:03.509 Filling out the roster around Durant, the Splash Brothers and 0:17:03.629 --> 0:17:07.989 Draymond would seem like a relatively easy task, But remember 0:17:08.709 --> 0:17:11.509 the center position had been held by Andrew Boget the 0:17:11.549 --> 0:17:15.349 previous few years, a former number one overall pick with 0:17:15.589 --> 0:17:18.669 defensive player of the year type of ability and a 0:17:18.749 --> 0:17:22.509 selfless approach that fit right in. Replacing him wouldn't be 0:17:22.589 --> 0:17:25.509 as easy as taking the first free agent center available. 0:17:26.069 --> 0:17:29.709 Peculia's role would be critical, and he recognized that early 0:17:29.829 --> 0:17:32.949 on as he was adjusting to Golden State's faster style 0:17:32.989 --> 0:17:33.349 of play. 0:17:35.029 --> 0:17:38.509 I never played in this system before, so it was 0:17:38.629 --> 0:17:41.669 quite adjustment. It took some time for me, a couple 0:17:41.749 --> 0:17:45.189 of weeks, a couple of months to really keep out 0:17:45.229 --> 0:17:47.789 with the pace, keep out with you know, the movements. 0:17:47.869 --> 0:17:50.269 And you know he's not like you know you have 0:17:51.109 --> 0:17:55.469 windows right, No, like jump ball back and forward, like 0:17:55.629 --> 0:17:58.549 not only is north and south, also like east to west, 0:17:58.669 --> 0:18:01.189 you know, so like ball should have been moving. You 0:18:01.269 --> 0:18:04.429 could not hold the ball and understand, I mean, well 0:18:04.549 --> 0:18:07.669 Staff needed a ball right where Clay like where Kad 0:18:07.869 --> 0:18:11.029 needed the ball right. So all this smolding little things, 0:18:11.069 --> 0:18:14.829 I think that's the differentiates good and great. And as 0:18:14.909 --> 0:18:17.948 a starting center, I had to be good. I had 0:18:17.989 --> 0:18:20.029 to be right on in point and I could have 0:18:20.149 --> 0:18:20.669 messed it out. 0:18:22.429 --> 0:18:24.949 The Warriors thought they were done building the team around 0:18:24.989 --> 0:18:29.509 the core of Curry, Clay, Draymond Durant and Iguadala, but 0:18:29.629 --> 0:18:32.909 Agwadala suggested one of his former teammates also be brought 0:18:32.949 --> 0:18:36.389 on board. JaVale McGhee was on the Mavericks the previous season, 0:18:36.589 --> 0:18:39.469 just like Jajah Paculia, but he was teammates with Iguadala 0:18:39.549 --> 0:18:41.749 on the Nuggets team that lost to the Warriors in 0:18:41.829 --> 0:18:45.869 the twenty fourteen playoffs. Iguadala pushed the Warriors to give 0:18:45.989 --> 0:18:50.789 the uber athletic seven foot McGee a chance. McGee would 0:18:50.789 --> 0:18:53.229 give Golden State a lab option. They didn't quite have 0:18:54.269 --> 0:18:56.709 a vertical threat in the half court and a big 0:18:56.829 --> 0:18:59.309 man who runs the floor. Well, it was the first 0:18:59.349 --> 0:19:02.149 time McGee teamed with Curry, but it wasn't the first 0:19:02.189 --> 0:19:05.789 impression he had of Steph. That came when Steph debuted 0:19:05.829 --> 0:19:09.389 one of his signature celebrations against McGee and the Denver Nuggets. 0:19:11.149 --> 0:19:14.709 I mean, the only thing that really lingered was, I 0:19:14.869 --> 0:19:19.069 believe a game against US Denver was the first time 0:19:19.269 --> 0:19:22.389 he had done a shoot in the corner three and 0:19:22.469 --> 0:19:24.429 turn around to look at the bench before it goes in. 0:19:25.229 --> 0:19:27.989 So it was like a spark for his swag to 0:19:28.109 --> 0:19:31.749 go up one hundred x. And I hate the fact 0:19:31.789 --> 0:19:33.429 that we were a part of that, or I guess 0:19:33.509 --> 0:19:34.269 I was a part of that. 0:19:34.789 --> 0:19:38.709 Curry with the whisker tree getting in back three on 0:19:38.829 --> 0:19:42.388 the way, Yes, Sir, turned around two. That was dirty. 0:19:43.549 --> 0:19:48.069 My goodness, this dude is ridiculous. 0:19:49.269 --> 0:19:57.829 Eight unanswered curry off a drive curry for three cats. 0:19:57.909 --> 0:20:01.989 God, Steph Curry from way downtown. There's step three pointer 0:20:02.069 --> 0:20:02.469 of the night. 0:20:04.029 --> 0:20:06.109 And it wouldn't take long for this center with the 0:20:06.189 --> 0:20:10.229 reputation of being somewhat goofy, to play a very serious 0:20:10.349 --> 0:20:11.668 role with the loaded dumps. 0:20:12.229 --> 0:20:15.429 I feel like I realized that once I started realizing 0:20:15.469 --> 0:20:18.669 how Draymond played and how he was more of a 0:20:18.829 --> 0:20:21.789 pass first player but would always have the ball in 0:20:21.869 --> 0:20:24.989 his hands. So I believe a couple of practices, a 0:20:25.069 --> 0:20:28.749 couple of preseason games, I'm realizing, like, Okay, he's throwing 0:20:28.829 --> 0:20:31.949 the live no matter what. So it was really helping 0:20:32.029 --> 0:20:35.389 me just with my timing and with my role of knowing, Okay, 0:20:35.509 --> 0:20:37.069 if he got the ball in his hand, be ready 0:20:37.109 --> 0:20:39.589 for a live and just dunk the ball and get 0:20:39.629 --> 0:20:42.509 back down the court and just focus on that because 0:20:42.509 --> 0:20:44.429 they don't need you shooting breeze, and it needs you 0:20:44.549 --> 0:20:46.469 posting enough, and it's a whole different type of team 0:20:46.869 --> 0:20:49.429 or whatever we got going. You got to be great 0:20:49.549 --> 0:20:52.109 at that certain roles so each person can do what 0:20:52.189 --> 0:20:54.109 they have to do so that we win this championship. 0:20:56.989 --> 0:21:04.269 The team was complete, and all that was left in 0:21:04.349 --> 0:21:07.269 the regular season was to acclimate Durant to his new 0:21:07.309 --> 0:21:10.869 teammates and for his new teammates to effectively shield him 0:21:11.189 --> 0:21:14.429 from the hatred that was to come. That would be 0:21:14.509 --> 0:21:17.549 at its most intense when Durant played in Oklahoma City 0:21:17.629 --> 0:21:20.148 for the first time as an opponent, but that wouldn't 0:21:20.149 --> 0:21:24.549 happen until February. Until then, the team's concerns were minimal. 0:21:25.709 --> 0:21:28.469 There was perhaps no better display of just how much 0:21:28.549 --> 0:21:31.669 scoring talent was on this team than on December fifth, 0:21:31.829 --> 0:21:36.869 twenty sixteen, in Oracle Arena. That's when Clay Thompson did 0:21:36.909 --> 0:21:41.069 his best Will Chamberlain impression, scoring sixty points in just 0:21:41.269 --> 0:21:45.189 twenty nine minutes and three seconds of playing time. It 0:21:45.309 --> 0:21:48.029 was a game against the Indiana Pacers, who happened to 0:21:48.069 --> 0:21:52.709 be starting old friend Monte Ellis opposite Thompson. Unlike the 0:21:52.749 --> 0:21:55.189 game in which Thompson scored thirty seven points in the 0:21:55.269 --> 0:21:58.429 third quarter, Clay was hot from the beginning of this one. 0:22:12.709 --> 0:22:15.948 With so much attention paid to Curry and Durant, Thompson 0:22:16.029 --> 0:22:19.389 scored an easy seventeen in the first court, all within 0:22:19.469 --> 0:22:22.749 the flow of the offense, all without much If any 0:22:23.029 --> 0:22:24.069 dribble can play. 0:22:23.989 --> 0:22:36.509 Himself twenty Thompson, your son, he's having a life. Play 0:22:36.589 --> 0:22:37.509 want to get three quarter? 0:22:40.749 --> 0:22:46.509 The events has gone nuts twenty seven for twenty. I'm 0:22:46.589 --> 0:22:47.589 twelve of sixteen. 0:22:47.749 --> 0:22:50.669 Shooting midway through the second period, with the Warriors leading 0:22:50.749 --> 0:22:53.829