Golden State Warriors

History

The Golden State Warriors was founded in 1946 as the Philadelphia Warriors by then-owner Peter A. Tyrrell. The Warriors were one of the founding members of the Basketball Association of America and won the inaugural championship during the 1946-47 season. The team then again clinched the title in the 1955-56 season.

In 1962, new majority owner Franklin Mieuli relocated the Warriors to the San Francisco Bay Area, and the team was renamed the San Francisco Warriors. After another ownership change, the team started playing most of its home games in Oakland. Before the start of the 1971-72 season, the team adopted the name Golden State Warriors.

Who is the owner of the Golden State Warriors?

The current majority owner of the Warriors is Joseph Steven Lacob, who is a businessman. Interestingly, he initially became a minority owner of the Boston Celtics in 2006. Then, in 2010, Lacob with minority owner Peter Guber bought the Warriors for $450 million from Chris Cohan. This required Lacob to sell his share of the Celtics. Lacob is not just an owner - he is a massive fan. Notably, he had been a Warriors' season ticket holder for over a decade before he purchased the team.

Lacob reportedly has an estimated net worth of $4 billion. He came from quite humble beginnings and couldn't afford college because of his family's financial constraints. So, he had to take a year off and work for the money for college. Lacob became a serial entrepreneur and reportedly invested in over 50 start-ups, of which around 30 were quite successful. His biggest financial success was when he was a partner in Kleiner Parkins. He then started his own business in 1987 after leaving Kleiner Parkins.

Who is the General Manager of the Golden State Warriors?

The Warriors are without a General Manager for the time being after Bob Myers stepped down from the role of President and GM in May 2023. Myers has been an integral part of the Warriors during his 12 years in the management. He played a huge role in the team's success in recent years, overseeing the onboarding of some of the most important players - Draymond Green, Kevin Durant and Andrew Wiggins, among others. He was also instrumental in the extension of superstars Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.

Team sponsors

The Golden State Warriors signed a three-year $20 million-per-year jersey sponsorship deal with Rakuten in 2017. This deal became the biggest jersey sponsorship deal in the NBA at the time. After renewing the contract in 2021, the Warriors then extended the deal recently in 2022, reportedly for $40 million annually. Some of the other major sponsors of the Dubs are Verizon, Clorox, Betway, Biofreeze, DoorDash and Fanatics.

Golden State Warriors roster

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Achievements and wins

The Golden State Warriors are the third most successful team in the NBA with 7 championships. The Dubs are behind the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers who have 17 titles each. The Dubs surpassed the Chicago Bulls with 6 titles after clinching their 7th ring in 2020. Even though they are far off from the Celtics and the Lakers, the Warriors were the first-ever champions. They won the title in the inaugural BAA season in 1946-47 led by basketball legend Joe Fulks. The NBA considers this an official title since the Warriors were one of the founding members of the BAA which then evolved into the NBA in 1948.

After a dry spell, the Warriors were again crowned champions of the 1955-56 season. This was followed by almost two decades of disappointment without a ring. Finally, the Dubs won the title in 1974-75 with the help of legends Rick Barry and Jamaal Wilkes.

After winning the division title in 1976, the Dubs had a lengthy drought of around four decades. They performed poorly for the most part of the 40 years and had just glimpses of hope here and there. Finally, things changed for the better in the early 2010s. In the 2009 NBA draft, the Warriors selected Stephen Curry as the 7th overall pick. Very few imagined that he would be one of the key factors behind the success of the team in coming future.

After minor setbacks and some injuries, Curry hit the ground running. The front office also made some smart moves that made the team stronger. Also, the addition of NBA legend Steve Kerr as the head coach was a huge step in the right direction. Curry and Klay Thompson became one of the best duos in the league. Draymond Green soon became one of the best defenders too. Furthermore, Green's versatility allowed Kerr to use smaller lineups which helped the team massively. The Warriors built a great team with role players like Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston and Harrison Barnes.

With the ascension of Curry as the back-to-back MVP, the Warriors won the title in 2015. After a disappointing finish in 2016, the team acquired superstar Kevin Durant. This further strengthened the team leading to two straight titles in 2017 and 2018. But the Dubs missed the opportunity to win three straight after losing to the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 Finals. Curry and the Warriors went on to beat all odds when they clinched the ring in 2022 against the Boston Celtics.

Key players and coaches

The Warriors have been fortunate to have had some incredible basketball stars and coaches on their team over the years. They have had Hall of Fame head coaches like Don Nelson, George Karl, Alex Hannum and Steve Kerr. The Dubs have retired the jerseys of legends Al Attles (#16), Tom Meschery (#14), Wilt Chamberlain (#13), Nate Thurmond (#42), Rick Barry (#24) and Chris Mullin (#17) so far.

Notably, All-Time Great Chamberlain made multiple records during his time with the Warriors. He was considered the greatest Warrior of all time by many until the arrival of Stephen Curry.

Read More: Stephen Curry: Everything There Is to Know About His Wife, Children and Family

Now, Curry is a franchise leader in a variety of different categories and has also led the team to four championships. The Warriors are expected to retire the jerseys of current stars Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala in the future for their role in their title runs.

Rivalry with Cleveland Cavaliers

The rivalry between the Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers is fairly new, starting when they clashed in four straight Finals from 2015 to 2018. Things started to heat up when the teams first faced each other in the 2015 NBA Finals. The Cavaliers led by LeBron James were no match for the Warriors with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala. The Dubs clinched the title 4-2 and Iguodala won the Finals MVP for his all-round performance.

The next year, the Warriors set a new regular season win record with 73 wins and 9 losses. They broke the previous record of 72-10 set by the iconic Chicago Bulls team. So the pressure began mounting on the Warriors to win the title. In the Finals, the Dubs once again met familiar foes, the Cavaliers. The Warriors had a quick start and led the series 3-1.

Interestingly, no team had ever won the title after trailing 3-1 in the Finals. But James, Kyrie Irving and their team did not quit. They took it one game at a time and started winning. This put immense pressure on the Warriors. The rivalry between the two reached an all-time high by game-7 in which the Cavs ultimately prevailed and lifted the trophy.

After the disappointing loss, the Warriors added more firepower to the lineup with superstar Kevin Durant. The team seemed unstoppable throughout the season and playoffs and again made the Finals. The Dubs wanted revenge and did just that by clinching the title 4-1 against the Cavs in 2017. The following year, the Warriors and Cavs faced off once again on the ultimate stage. This time, the Cavs had no answer as the Warriors swept them easily to win their second straight ring.

Warriors nicknamed ‘Dubs’

The Warriors are nicknamed the Dubs. According to reports, fans shortened the Warriors to “W’s” and then even shorter to “Dubs". However, the Warriors have certainly earned their nickname winning four titles in the last seven years.

Warriors on social media