Which Steph-era Warriors title team was best?

Settle the Argument: Which Steph-era Warriors title team was best? originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The last decade of Warriors basketball has been nothing short of a dynasty. Four championships, six trips to the NBA Finals and a handful of future Hall of Famers have walked through the doors in both Oakland and San Francisco.

Steph Curry one day will wear an orange jacket in Springfield, Mass. So will Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and coach Steve Kerr. Andre Iguodala certainly made his case, too.

Each of the Warriors’ four championships under Kerr, with the Big Three of Curry, Thompson and Green leading the way, have held a special place in franchise history. But which team was best? Here at NBC Sports Bay Area, we’re looking to find the final answer in a “Settle the Argument” debate, and we need your help.

Fans will decide via social media, starting Tuesday with the 2015 champions taking on the 2022 champions.

The 2017 champions then will go against the 2018 champions in a Nov. 24 vote, and the winners will duke it out on Nov. 28.

A Strat-O-Matic simulation has the 2015 champions as the best team, beating the 2018 champions in six games. Below, NBC Sports Bay Area has made the argument for all four teams of why they should, and shouldn’t, be considered the best of the bunch.

2015 champions

Why they can be considered the best team: There’s nothing quite like accomplishing the ultimate goal for the first time. The 2014-15 Warriors were a team 40 years in the making, winning their first NBA championship since Rick Barry and the Warriors swept the Washington Bullets in 1975.

This was Steve Kerr’s first season as head coach, and the five-time champion as a player was able to lead the Warriors to the promised land in his first time coaching at any level. It also was the culmination of Curry’s first MVP season, and he averaged 28.3 points in the playoffs, including 26.0 points, 6.3 assists and 5.2 rebounds in the Finals. The Warriors’ Big Three of Curry, Thompson and Green won their first title, but “Strength in Numbers” was in full effect.

Andre Iguodala was named Finals MVP for his efforts defending LeBron James while also averaging 16.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. The Warriors won 67 regular-season games, by far the best in basketball, and finished the regular season with the league’s second-best offensive rating (110.4), best defensive rating (100.4) and best net rating (9.9).

Why they likely can’t be considered the best: For how great these Warriors were, this wasn’t their most dominant team in the regular season or playoffs. This was just the start, but not the height of their powers.

The Warriors did find themselves in a two-games-to-one hole in the Western Conference semifinals against the Memphis Grizzlies before winning three straight to move onto the conference finals. Then, there’s the made-up asterisks those on the outside put on the Warriors’ Finals opponent.

Kyrie Irving only played one game for the Cavaliers, and Cleveland didn’t have Kevin Love at all.

2017 champions

Why they can be considered the best team: Pure domination. After winning 73 regular-season games the season before but then dropping a three-games-to-one lead to the Cavaliers over seven games in the Finals, the Warriors essentially swapped Harrison Barnes for Kevin Durant and couldn’t be stopped.

The Warriors won 67 regular-season games and had three players average at least 22 points per game. They had four NBA All-Stars – Curry, Thompson, Green and Durant – and Green was named the league’s Defensive Player of the Year. The Warriors led the NBA in offensive rating (114.8), were second in defensive rating (103.4) and first in net rating (11.4), while having a 70.4 assist percentage.

And the playoffs were a breeze.

They swept the Portland Trail Blazers, swept the Utah Jazz, swept the San Antonio Spurs and won their first three games against the Cavs in the Finals to be 15-0 in the playoffs. The Warriors took down James in five games, outscoring their playoff opponents by an average of 14 points. Durant won his first of two Finals MVPs, averaging 35.2 points on 55.6-percent shooting, 47.4 percent from 3-point range and 92.7 percent on free throws, as well as 8.2 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game.

Curry was right behind, averaging 26.8 points, 9.4 assists and 8.0 rebounds in the Finals.

Why they likely can’t be considered the best: Is there really an argument against these Warriors? Kawhi Leonard did aggravate a sprained left ankle when he came down on Warriors center Zaza Pachulia in the first game of the West finals, but there simply wasn’t a team that was going to stop the 2016-17 Warriors.

The only real argument is for those who still shed a tear saying Durant joining the Warriors wasn’t fair.

2018 champions

Why they can be considered the best team: It’s never easy to repeat as champions, but the Warriors did just that in their fourth straight trip to the Finals. Curry and Durant each averaged exactly 26.4 points in the regular season and both fell barely short of a 50/40/90 shooting season. The Warriors again had four All-Stars but didn’t take home any hardware from the regular season.

Golden State also had two players make at least 200 3-pointers and four eclipse the 100 mark for 3s made in the regular season. Durant was named Finals MVP for the second straight year, this time averaging 28.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 7.5 assists on 52.6-percent shooting, 40.9-percent shooting beyond the arc and 96.3 percent at the charity stripe as the Warriors swept the Cavs.

Why they likely can’t be considered the best: The second season of Durant wearing a Warriors jersey had more bumps in the road than the first, from the regular season to the playoffs.

The Warriors won 58 games, finishing second in the West to the 65-win Houston Rockets. Even the 59-win Toronto Raptors were better than the Warriors in the regular season. The Warriors were third in offensive rating (112.8), 11th in defensive rating (106.8) and third in net rating (5.9).

Though they beat the Spurs in the first round in five games and the New Orleans Pelicans in five games in the second round, the Warriors faced their toughest test of the Durant era against the Rockets in the conference finals. The Warriors were in a three-games-to-two deficit and on the brink of elimination against the Rockets before winning two straight to reach the Finals yet again. Plus, Chris Paul, then a member of the Rockets, missed the final two games of the series after sustaining a strained right hamstring late in Game 5.

Then again, Iguodala only played in three of the seven games.

2022 champions

Why they can be considered the best team: The Warriors won one championship and a regular-season record 73 games before Durant came aboard for three seasons. Their 2022 championship meant something special: The Big Three of Curry, Thompson and Green won another ring without one of basketball’s greatest superstars. Finally, and we mean finally, Curry won his first Finals MVP.

His performance at 34 years old was nothing short of spectacular. Curry over six games against the Boston Celtics averaged 31.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.0 steals while shooting 43.7 percent on 3-pointers. Down two-games-to-one in Boston, Curry’s 43-point, 10-rebound performance where he also drained seven 3s will be remembered when he’s enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

The Warriors in the regular season had four players average at least 17 points per game. Klay Thompson returned from his two-plus-year absence from a pair of season-ending leg injuries and became a champion his first season back. There were plenty of surprises throughout the season, and even more triumphs.

Why they likely can’t be considered the best: The 2022 champions simply weren’t the Warriors’ most dominant title team. Their 53 wins were the fewest of the franchise’s four most recent championship teams. Curry was their lone All-Star, and the Warriors were the No. 3 seed in the West going into the playoffs.

In the regular season, the Warriors ranked second in defensive rating (106.6), but 16th in offensive rating (112.1) and fourth in net rating (4.4).

When it’s all said and done, the 2022 champions always will have a special place in Warriors history. They overcame injuries and their star trio barely spent any time together on the court before the playoffs. But once the playoffs began, their combination of depth and Steph being Steph had them back atop the NBA mountain.

Now that we’ve made our arguments, it’s time for Dub Nation to have their voice heard.

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