How Rupert Murdoch Changed Sports Media Forever
The Warriors survived an injury-riddled regular season by turning supporting players into stars, but now — with the Splash Brothers and Draymond Green back to their dominant best — their collective strength has them looking unbeatable.
On Sunday, Golden State went up 3-0 over Dallas in the Western Conference Finals, all but punching a ticket to their first NBA Finals since 2018-19.
Some might argue this is exactly where the Warriors should be, given their league-high $179 million payroll, but in a season filled with superteam flops, “failsafe” options like Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins are now putting them over the top.
- The Warriors’s 114.5 PPG and 115.6 offensive rating lead the postseason, but their Green-led defense has held Luka Doncic and the Mavs to 101.3 PPG.
- Dallas is shooting only 32.6% from three — down from 40% against Phoenix.
- After Poole dominated in previous series, Wiggins is +66 and shooting 39.7% 3PT, both team highs on a team with Steph Curry and Klay Thompson.
Wiggins has been a revelation this season, earning his first All-Star selection and justifying the Warriors’ third-highest salary ($31.6M) — and Sunday’s poster dunk on Doncic might prove to be the dagger that sealed the Mavs’ fate.
If the Warriors haven’t quite contained Doncic (34 PPG), Steve Kerr’s zone defense has forced Luka’s teammates to step up — which hasn’t happened. Doncic is now tied for the longest losing streak while scoring 40+ points in NBA playoff history.
Put all this together, and you have a heavy favorite to bring home the NBA title (-155).
