Steve Kerr explains why Warriors’ five-year Finals run is ‘highly unlikely’ to be repeated

We are a month away from the end of this NBA campaign, and all we know for sure is that this season there will be a different champion for the sixth consecutive year. This just goes to show that when Golden State made five consecutive trips to The Finals, it was quite the feat. 

During those five years, of which the Bay Area squad conquered three championships, now more than ever seems to be one of the most remarkable records in league history. You could even think that the Warriors might just be the last franchise to achieve this in a long, long time.

This week, coach Steve Kerr told the press just how improbable it is for this to happen again. “I think it’s highly unlikely,” he said on NBC Sports Bay Area.

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The Warriors' remarkable five-year run to The Finals is unlikely to be repeated due to fatigue and increased competition in the NBA. Coach Steve Kerr acknowledges the challenges faced by teams aiming for consecutive championships. With… https://t.co/hOnJoW4t28

— NBA Digest (@nba_digest) May 24, 2024

The Golden State club are not only the last team to make back-to-back trips to the Finals, but also the last to conquer back-to-back NBA Finals. Now that both the Nuggets and Heat have been eliminated from the playoffs, there will be two entirely different squads facing each other in June in comparison to last year.

“I think the run last season and coming back and the amount of minutes that our starters had to play,” said Denver coach Michael Malone after losing to the Wolves. “I think mentally, emotionally (and) physically, guys are gassed. They’re dead tired.”

This makes sense, as the Colorado team had a nine-month campaign last year, because that’s what it takes to become an NBA champ. It is common to see the title holders lose during their following postseason runs, just as the Lakers did back in 2021, when they suffered a first-round exit as reigning champions.

“The first thing you realize is everybody is building their team to beat you,” Kerr explained. “They’re not just gunning for you. They’re literally building their team to beat you. (Denver’s Nikola) Jokic even said it after the loss. He said, ‘That team is built to beat us.’ If (the Timberwolves) don’t have all three of those 7-footers, I don’t think they win Game 7 or that series.”

He added: “Once you win one, everybody’s not only gunning for you, emotionally getting charged up, but they’re scheming for you, too. It just gets harder and harder.”

Kerr revealed that he was impressed on how his Warriors maintained their ambitious intensity throughout five-straight seasons

Being able to navigate through five-consecutive years enduring nine-month campaigns each time, is not only proof of great conditioning, but also some sort of torture for these NBA stars. This is why the Golden State coach continues to marvel over his roster’s endurance.

“I still marvel at our guys and the energy that they summoned during that stretch,” the tactician expressed. “To take on all comers and to keep getting back there. Obviously, we had a ton of talent, but it takes more than that. It takes incredible passion and competitive desire. And our guys had that.”

Now, both the Players’ Association and the NBA are negotiating another Collective Bargaining Agreements that will hopefully promote enduring parity. In a way, the CBA is designed to battle the concept of dynasties and contribute to roster turnover.

“That’s definitely an issue,” Kerr said. “It puts more of a premium on trying to develop young guys. And developing young guys while you’re trying to win a championship – I know first-hand – it’s not easy. (Malone) talked about it the other night after they lost Game 7. All the forces sort of conspire against you when you’re the champs.”