On July 4, when Kevin Durant announced that he would be taking his talents to the Golden State Warriors, the team instantly became the clear favorites to win the 2017 NBA Championship. The reaction to Durant’s announcement from the majority of fans, commentators, and experts was that the Durant addition turned Golden State into an unstoppable force that would be too difficult for defending champion Cleveland to beat in a seven game series. They turned out to be right, as the Warriors beat the Cavs Monday night in Game 5 of the NBA Finals to win their second championship in three years. The victory was the icing on what was perhaps the most dominant playoff run in NBA history, as Golden State finished the postseason with a 15-1 record.
While the Warriors winning the championship probably was not surprising to many, not everyone was on board with the narrative when Durant made his July announcement. Here’s a bunch of takes from people right after the announcement proclaiming that, even with the KD addition, the Warriors would NOT win the title in 2017…
The warriors will not win it all
— Mr. Relentless (@ViktoryR4) July 4, 2016
Warriors won't win save this tweet https://t.co/EeE5A8IHe1
— Ryan White (@smoove__19) July 4, 2016
No. The Golden State Warriors did NOT win the 2016-17 NBA championship today. @wkyc
— John Anderson (@johnWKYC) July 4, 2016
Hot take: Golden State will not win the NBA title next year with Kevin Durant. Too many cooks. ???
— Brandon Marcello (@bmarcello) July 4, 2016
I will get on the record right now and say it. #Warriors will not win a title as currently constituted. Durant will not fit with that team.
— Jason Page (@TheBackPage) July 4, 2016
"The Warriors will NOT win the 2017 NBA title. Book it!" – @egoldie80
— Aaron Goldhammer (@HammerNation19) July 6, 2016
Going to say something blasphemous: 24 hours after the Durant news, Ive got to be honest – I don't think the 2017 Warriors win the NBA title
— Aaron Torres (@Aaron_Torres) July 5, 2016
.@Scalabrine and Cedric Maxwell have a heated debate on if the @warriors are a lock to win the next few NBA titles https://t.co/hrnEEQtZjO
— CSN New England (@CSNNE) July 5, 2016
Considering I won't be a college athlete next finals…I'm taking all bets. Warriors will not win the finals next year!
— Jalen Reeves-Maybin (@ReevesMaybin) July 4, 2016
We know how this ended last year. Warriors not winning one confirmed. https://t.co/zbL2qcmSDe
— Ry (@JustRyCole) July 5, 2016
Warriors not winning the finals in 2017.
— #FREEGATES (@KingMiller_) July 4, 2016
Looking forward to the @KDTrey5 @warriors not winning the @nba championship next season. #TooLoadedWillFail
— TrevorAnthony (@TrevorAnthony) July 5, 2016
“I’ll take my shot with James and this group in a seven-game series against anyone, including Golden State.”- Terry Pluto, cleveland.com, July 5, 2016
