ESPN’s resident “lord of the take” Stephen A. Smith visited Gary & Larry on radio row in Minneapolis Wednesday afternoon, to share his thoughts on a variety of subjects, including the Golden State Warriors. Smith was asked by Gary Radnich what the chances are that the Houston Rockets — who currently sit second in the NBA behind the Warriors in both overall record and point differential, but lead the season series 2-1 — could upset Golden State this postseason. Smith explained why Houston, and the rest of the NBA, is a long shot.
“Twenty-five percent chance,” Smith said of Houston’s chances. “But ultimately the Warriors are a collection of greatness. They share the basketball, they trust one another, they can amp it up in ways defensively that most teams can’t including the Houston Rockets, and that’s what does not get recognized: the fact that the Warriors can amp it up defensively.”
Stephen A. also explained why the Warriors got blown out in Utah, and said that when they try, nobody can touch them.
“Steve Kerr was absolutely right with what he said, but we need to consider why he said that,” Smith said of the Warriors head coach blasting his team. “When you’re this great, and you know you are that great. There are going to be nights when you take things for granted, especially during the regular season. You don’t know what those dudes were doing the night before, you don’t know how much sleep they had, you don’t know why they didn’t have any sleep. They didn’t prioritize that game against Utah, you know why? Because it was Utah, and because it was the regular season and they have absolutely nothing to worry about. These are the kind’ve things that happen when you’ve won two of the last three NBA titles, and you’re the prohibitive favorite to win a third in four years. There is nobody in the stratosphere that can touch you as a collective unit.
“What is there to talk about here? There’s nothing. There’s no parity in all of this. When Golden State wants to play, no one else matters. They’ll want to play in June and no one else will matter then.”
Listen to the full interview below. To hear Stephen A. on Golden State, skip to 7:30.