Warriors’ ‘We Believe’ team honored. What that squad and these Kings have in common
The Kings are trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
A team that faced a similar drought was honored Thursday night at Oracle Arena.
The 2006-07 Golden State Warriors made the playoffs for the first time in 13 seasons. Dubbed the “We Believe” squad, the Warriors broke the franchise’s long drought and shocked the NBA by becoming just the third No. 8 seed to win a first-round series, ousting the No. 1 Dallas Mavericks in six games.
Steve Kerr, now the Warriors’ coach, was a commentator with TNT at that time.
“I was on the mic that night for the deciding game with Marv Albert,” Kerr said before Thursday’s game. “I probably said it that night on the air, but that was the greatest atmosphere I’d ever experienced in a basketball game in the NBA. That’s not hyperbole. This place was so loud and there were ... many years of frustration that were being expelled that night.
“Just an amazing experience to be a part of it and soak it all in.”
Should the Kings make the playoffs, it would be their first appearance in 13 years. Coach Dave Joerger said he doesn’t want to add any pressure to his developing team.
“It’s a young group, I’m trying not to over-inundate them with pressure,” he said. “Try to keep it simple. It’s a good experience for us ... and (we) have a chance to get in and that would be really cool. I think our guys are excited about it.”
In attendance Thursday as the Warriors hosted the Kings to resume play after the All-Star break were Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Don Nelson and four former players: Kelenna Azubuike, Adonal Foyle, Stephen Jackson and Jason Richardson.
Jackson got things going during player introductions.
“Let’s get this party started,” Jackson said. “Lights out!”
Richardson came down to the court to present current Warriors forward Kevin Durant with the All-Star MVP trophy before tipoff.
Kerr praised Nelson’s influence on the game during his pregame conference.
“Nelly was ahead of his time,” Kerr said. “All the stuff you’re seeing teams do now, playing small and playing uptempo, he was doing that 40 years ago in Milwaukee, but he didn’t get a whole lot of credit for the revolution that’s going on now.”
Other players on that team but not in attendance include Matt Barnes, the Del Campo High School product who spent two stints with the Kings and won a ring with the Warriors in 2016-17 before retiring; and Baron Davis, who had one of the most memorable playoff dunks that season.
In Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Utah Jazz with the Warriors up 119-99, Davis went baseline and threw down a monstrous right-hand jam over Andrei Kirilenko, who at 6-foot-9 stands 6 inches taller than Davis, and drew a foul as the Oracle crowd erupted.
Golden State lost that series 4-1, but the energy and hope that team brought to Warriors fans has not been forgotten by their fans.
If the Kings are able to break their playoff drought, it could be the type of feat that sparks the franchise, just as some say the “We Believe” team did for the Warriors.