Opinion: Win or Lose, Dubs Are ESPN’s Newest Non-Stop Obsession

OMG! The Golden State Warriors lost at home!

No. Not just lost at home at the seemingly intimating little gym in the East Bay known as “Roarcle”, nor was it to current foil LeBron James or the hated San Antonio Spurs, but to the scrappy 44-win Boston Celtics.

Yet this morning, those in the Bay Area and Silicon Valley are not laughing at what may been the cruelest April Fool’s day joke of all.

In losing to Boston, my thoughts on the Warriors 109-106 loss last night are this; They don’t like tight games, and more glaringly obvious, their newest Bristol-based cheerleader hates it more than them.

In observing–more like being force-fed–Steph Curry’s pre-game dribbling routine and shooting from the tunnel highlights seeming non-stop, the Warriors don’t like CLOSE games against teams with tenacious defense, who can execute in the half-court such as Boston–and most recently the San Antonio Spurs. I’m still at a loss as to how LA’s newest walking reality show in the Los Angeles Lakers beat them by double-digits.

Yes, THAT 16-win outfit.

While I won’t go as far as to say that Dub’s is the NBA version of Donald Trump in terms of being the center of America’s curious and needy fascination with what’s hip and trendy, but they have become the newest team, that opposing fans are learning to love to hate. In winning 68 games so far, they have showboated, showed up and utterly crushed all teams in a manner seemingly unheard of with ease.

Yet, they try to act all pretty and show off for the flashing smart-phones in taking 35-foot threes and arrogantly smiling in front of the camera etc.

Combine that with enabling the NBA’s newest trash-talking, yet-smiling and smug villain in forward Draymond Green and in essence, they are the PERFECT team for today’s image-driven, fan-obsessed social media age. A new trend that I have noticed is the sudden emergence of Warriors “fans” who are really a combination of anti-LBJ haters that most likely a bitter and salty amalgam of Heat, Bulls, and just general casual band wagoners following the newest and coolest trend.

What really irks me is that NONE of them know of the Warriors high-scoring 90’s trio known as TMC, Chris Mullin, Tim Haradway and Mitch Richmond, one of the leagues original “Big Three”s, or lived thru the Baron Davis era and those horrid “lightning bolt” tops. Nor do any of them know that Curry’s first three years were marked with various ankle injuries.

I mean, when in Rome, do as the Romans do, but at least know the history of the game and the team that you chose to root for. Google “plastic fans”, and that is what a majority of these so-called Dubs “fans” truly are.

Yet, as the Celtics and Spurs have shown, the key to beating the Warriors is PACE. Slow them down and stick on Curry and Klay as if they are glue. Most importantly make your shots, contest theirs, make them work for it. If they make them, tip your hat off to them, but if they don’t be sure to play your game at your pace, not theirs.

I’m NOT saying this as a Cavaliers fan or any other fan, but am I the only one who has noticed how ESPN has turned into the Steph Curry Network?

I mean, I get it, it is for ratings and such, but to be so blatantly one-sided and talk about Curry NON-STOP is one of the reasons why I can barely tolerate them any more. That along with their SEC love affair, and it’s become nothing but Dubs highlights almost every segment.

Before their loss to the C’s, ESPN–or as I’m now calling them, the Eternal Steph Propaganda Network–ran a segment on owner Joe Lacob and his comments in Times’ Magazine about being “light years ahead”, Curry’s three-point percentage dropping down 14 percentage points from 54 to 40, a montage of all of Curry’s made threes this season, and of course, he being the new cover boy of their upcoming new magazine. Look no further than the proverbial conniption fit that Stan Varrett practically had last night, and you get my point.

ESPN didn’t even touch LBJ surpassing the Big O for 11th on the all-time scoring list, during Cleveland’s 110-108 overtime win over the Atlanta Hawks, nor how Boston’s gritty–and frankly underrated point guard, Isaiah Thomas practically matching Steph point-for-point in a pivotal back-and-forth third quarter, either. Damn.

Sheesh, I get it ESPN, I mean your sugar daddy JUST won the national title in college football (Alabama), but with no Kentucky in the Final Four, you are really going to push your new love affair with Dubs to a stalkerish-high new level of jumping the shark.

Whatever happened to actual reporting and coverage of all teams? Or did you forget that there are 29 other teams? That’s right! you did, because you’re too busy being in bed with Dubs, and overly-coddling your new baby golden boy in Curry.

With the playoffs fast approaching, it is a whole new ballgame, in which possessions will mean more, defenses will force you to play half-court, and you cannot run-and-gun like you do in the regular season. All of the above fit Dubs’ modis operandi, and with teams already seeing their tendencies or what they like to do, and what they don’t like to do, it will be a long slough to a back-to-back title in June.

If there is one team that has proven to be their proverbial krpytonite, it is the San Antonio Spurs, and in all honestly, it would not surprise me if they get upset by them. Much like how good pitching always beats good hitting in baseball, defensive-minded teams like the Spurs ALWAYS beat high-scoring jump-shooting teams like the Warriors, and if you recall, if not for a lucky and heroic Chris Paul shot last spring in Game 7 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, the Spurs would have faced the Warriors, plus with their savvy combination of veterans, coaching and talent, Golden State will not be so lucky this year.

Personally, I’ll be glad when the Spurs do in fact beat the Warriors in the West Finals, so that ESPN can stop being on Golden State’s proverbial you-know-what, and that Curry and Co. become the ultimate example of a media-coronated regular-season champion that comes up short when it mattered the most.