Games In The Parks, To Oracle Arena, Basketball Is Ever .

the first team to beat the Bostontwo of the game’s biggest stars justCeltics in the playoffs in eight years.entering the prime of their careers.But this didn’t scare San Francisco.Or so they thought.Barry averaged 40.8 points per gameAfter the 1966–67 season, in ain the series and the Warriors beatmove that shocked the basketballthe Sixers twice. The 76ers eventuallyworld, Rick Barry left the Warriorswon the series in six games, butand signed with the Oakland Oaksthe people of San Francisco andof the ABA (American BasketballWarriors owner Franklin Mieuli wereAssociation). When asked abouthopeful for the future. They hadhis decision Barry said, “This is theway I support my family IfAl Attles attempts a shotduring the 1967 NBA Finals.18Hall of Fame center BobLanier guards Nate the Greatin the post.forever be a villain to the Warriorsit hosted rodeos and livestockfranchise.events, it was not the ideal arena foreverything was based just onWhile the War r iors werea basketball team. Before the 1971–loyalty, no one would ever makeundergoing a painful break-up72 season, the team permanentlyany money.” The commentswith their star forward, the team’srelocated to Oakland and changedwere a harsh reminder thatrelationship to San Francisco wastheir name to the Golden Stateprofessional basketball is aalso changing. Games at The CowWarriors.business. For fans, the notionPalace in Daly City (located justThe city of Oakland had longthat the players might have asouth of San Francisco) were not allbeen a hub of the basketball world,different set of concerns thanthat well attended, and players andthey do was hard to accept.fans alike complained about theMany thought Barr y wouldsmell. Named “Cow Palace” becauseGoing Home Again?In 2012, the Warriors announced theirintention to move the team back to SanFrancisco in the coming years.19

presidential candidate RobertBarr y spent three seasonsKennedy were assassinatedplaying back east, but by the 1971–For two years, the city of Oaklandin one horrifying two-month72 ABA season, he was longingcheered the dynamic duo of Ricks p a n . A c r o s s t h e c o u n t r y,to return home. The Golden StateBarry and Nate “the Great” as theyAmericans were showingWarriors were a talented team,led the Warriors to winning records.their frustration with theirgetting far more attention thanBut before the 1974–75 season,country’s wars, overt racism,the Oakland Oaks had a few yearsWarriors ownership determinedand disregard for the poor. Andbefore. In a moment of refreshingthat the team needed an infusion ofin Oakland, a deadly exchangehumility, Barry and the Warriors putyouth. They traded Nate “the Great”between police officers andaside their differences and agreedto the Chicago Bulls for Clifford Ray,but in 1968 and 1969, its people hadBlack Panther founder, Hueyon a deal. During a forgettablenot shown any interest in Rick Barry’sNewton, symbolized the strugglefour-year span in the ABA,Oakland Oaks. The United States wasbetween law enforcement andBarry had been traded twiceenduring difficult times. The countryoppressed minorities. The cityand sustained multiple kneewas fighting an unpopular war inwas too preoccupied with socialinjuries. Now he was returningVietnam, and at home, civil rightsand political affairs to give muchto the very team that he said heleader Martin Luther King, Jr. andthought to the new basketballwould never play for again. Butteam. After two seasons of poorlyhis teammates and the city ofattended games, including theOakland welcomed him back,1968–69 ABA Championship, theand the Warriors quietly grewOaks moved to Washington D.C.into something no one sawCivil Rights leader Dr. MartinLuther King, Jr. was assassinatedin the spring of 1968.Oakland ActivistsWhile attending Merritt College inOakland, Huey Newton and BobbySeale organized the Black PantherParty in 1966.20coming: NBA champions.Nate “the Great” battles Bucksstar, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, forrebounding position.21

Historic Barrier Fallsa young 6’9” center who was comingThe Warriors rode Rick Barry’sOakland Coliseum had alreadyoff his best year as a pro. In addition30.6 points and 6.2 assists all thescheduled other events on the daysto this move, the Warriors hadway to the Western Conferencethat The Finals were supposed todrafted UCLA star Jamaal Wilkes,Finals where, as fate would have it,take place. With no alternative, theand University of San Francisco All-they encountered the Chicago BullsWarriors shrugged their shoulderstale season. Everything just fell intoAmerican, Phil Smith. The team wasand their former teammate Nateand crossed the Bay Bridge,place. It’s something I’ll treasure foryounger, faster, and built to score.“the Great.” With a trip to the NBAreturning to their old digs at thethe rest of my life.” He was not alonePouring in 108.5 points per game,Finals on the line, the Warriors ralliedCow Palace. But if their pride wasin treasuring the moment. Elatedthe 1974–75 Warriors scored morefor a huge Game 6 win in Chicagoat all injured, the Warriors didn’tBay Area basketball fans joined himthan any other team in the league.and then barely edged the Bulls inshow it. Instead they went out andin celebrating Northern California’sthe deciding Game 7 at home,beat the Washington Bullets in fourfirst NBA crown.83–79. Despite the victory, theystraight games. The Warriorsentered the NBA Finals as hugeovercame deficits of 14 pointsunderdogs to Elvin Hayes,in Games 1 and 4, and 13 pointsWes Unseld, and the mightyin Game 3, to pull off the historicWashington Bullets.sweep.Rookie of the Year JamaalWilkes drives past Bullets starElvin Hayes.22NBA analysts were notWhen asked about winningthe only ones surprised bythe championship, Finals MVPthe Warriors run to The Finals.Rick Barry said, “It has to be theHaving expected them to begreatest upset in the history ofeliminated by late spring, thethe NBA Finals. It was like a fairy-The 1975 NBA Finals was the firstchampionship game or series in profootball, baseball, hockey, or basketballto feature two African American headcoaches—Al Attles and K.C. Jones.Rick Barry battles WesUnseld for the rebound.23

The run of great basketballin the Bay Area didn’t end in the1975 NBA Finals. For the nexttwo seasons Barry, Wilkes, Smith,and the Warriors were factorsin the playoffs. Unfortunatelythe trio never again played for achampionship. After a 1978–79Eric “Sleepy” Floyd scored aplayoff-record 29 points in the 4thquarter against the L.A. Lakers.season in which the Warriorsfailed to make the playoffs for thefirst time in four years, Rick BarryChapter 3N e l l ie B a l l24left California to finish his career inmeeting the “Showtime” Los AngelesHouston. After his departure, theLakers in the Western ConferenceWarriors suffered through a nine-Semifinals. Trailing Magic Johnson’syear nightmare in which they failedteam 3–0, Warriors guard Eric “Sleepy”to make the playoffs. Funny that aFloyd erupted in Game 4 for 51man nicknamed “Sleepy” would bepoints (a record-setting 39 comingthe one to wake them up.in the 2nd half ) and the Warriors beatIn the 1987 playoffs, the Warriorsthe Lakers, 129–121. It wasn’t a tripwon their first playoff series in 10to The Finals, but it was a step in theyears against the Utah Jazz beforeright direction. With the hiring of25

Enshrined Artistsa new coach in 1988, the Warriorswho forms tight bonds with hispositive impact he had on playerslooked to follow that winning path.players and gets the most out of hislike Chris Mullin, Tim Hardaway,Co a c h e s a re c h a ra c te r i ze dteam. There is the disciplinary coachMitch Richmond, Stephen Jacksonin many different ways. There islike Pat Riley, who rides his playersand Baron Davis. Nellie’s “Run TMC”the consistency coach like Gregghard and lets them know when theyteam of the late 1980s (the TMC1985 Draft, they believed theyPopovich, whose team plays greatare not meeting his expectations.standing for stars Tim, Mitch, andwere drafting a sure thing. Butdefense and finishes at or near theThen there is the wild-card coachChris), and the “We Believe” Warriors3,000 miles from his hometown oftop of their division every year. Therelike Don Nelson, the kind of coachof 2006 through 2008, played a styleBrooklyn, New York, a lonely andis the player’s coach like Doc Rivers,who breaks ever y basketballof basketball that energized a fanhomesick Chris Mullin struggledconvention and is willing to takebase and got the attention of thewith personal issues. When Donlarge risks in order to maximize hisentire country.Nelson arrived as an assistant coachD o n N e l s o n’s f i r s tteam’s potential.Tim Hardaway drivesthe lane for anacrobatic lay-up.26For many years Don Nelsoncontribution to the Warriorsbrought “Nellie Ball”—a fast-paced,franchise was in 1988offense-oriented style of play thatand had little to do withsometimes worked and sometimesbasketball. For three seasons,didn’t—toStateformer All-American, ChrisWarriors. Whatever your opinionsMullin, had been failing toof Nelson and Nellie Ball, there’smeet expec tations. Whenno denying his importance to thethe Warriors had selectedGolden State franchise and thehim with the #7 pick in thetheThe name “Run TMC” was a play on thelegendary hip hop group Run-D.M.C.In 2014, Richmond joined Mullin andRun-D.M.C. in their profession’s Hall ofFame.Golden27“Nellie Ball” transformedChris Mullin into an All-Star,a member of the DreamTeam and a Hall-of-Famer.

in 1987, he recognized that Mullinswept the 2nd seeded Utah Jazz. Theythe Warriors took in scoring aneeded help and encouraged himfell in the second round, but Mullin’sleague-leading 116 points perto leave basketball for a while andemergence as one of the league’sgame, they would have seen whatseek treatment. Mullin enteredtop scorers, as well as a big-gamethe excitement was all about.a rehabilitation clinic, missed 22player (he averaged 29.4 per gameThis excitement spilledgames, and emerged 48 days later ain the playoffs), stoked Warriors fans’over into the 1990–91 season,changed man.hopes for the future. And the futurea season in which there was noIn the 1988–89 season, a leaner,was electric. In 1988, Mullin teamedthreesome in the league thatmeaner Chris Mullin averaged aup with Kansas State University starcould match the numbers putcareer best 26.5 points per game.Mitch Richmond, and in 1989, rookieup by the Warriors trio of ChrisI’m going to call no plays. As long asThe Warriors made the playoffs andTim Hardaway joined the party. TheMullin (25.7 points per game), Mitchyou guys are sharing the basketball,incendiary trio was known as “RunRichmond (23.9 points per game),playing the right way no plays.’”TMC.”and Tim Hardaway (22.9 points andWho needed plays when youThe 1989–90 Warriors didn’t9.7 assists per game). In fact, Runhad the Warriors pushing the ballmake the playoffs. They didn’t evenTMC was so good at scoring theup the court on every possession?finish the season with a winningbasketball that coach Don NelsonWho needed plays when you hadrecord. At 37–45, the casual fanwould often tell them to forget thepoint guard Tim Hardaway breakingmight not have thought that thereplaybook. According to Chris Mullin,was much to talk about. But if that“On a given night, Nellie wouldfan watched the way this teamgive us the freedom to just go outcompeted, if they witnessed the joythere and play. He’d say, ‘tonight,Mitch Richmond jukesa defender and turnsthe corner.28Tim Hardaway keeps his head upand looks for an open teammateas he pushes the ball up the court.Name That TrioThe name “Run TMC” was chosen by theplayers after The San Francisco Examinersponsored a “Name the Warriors Trio”contest.29

Breaking Up Is Hard To DoMitch Richmond was traded to theSacramento Kings for Billy Owens,a promising 6’9” forward whom theWarriors believed would bring themthe size they needed to advance inthe playoffs.Hardaway rewarded him by leadingbigger, faster, and better damagedthe Warriors to three straight winsteam chemistry. In the years thatover the San Antonio Spurs and afollowed the break-up of Run TMC,first-round playoff series victory.fans watched their beloved WarriorsSadly, Run TMC only lastedTimeless AppealAfter more than 20 years, Run TMCT-shirts are still available online andnumerous highlight reels can beviewed on YouTube.sink into a funk from which itstint in Dallas to coach the Warriors.seemed they might never recover.Nelson and Mullin were reunitedopponent’s ankles on every drive totwo seasons. Before the 1991–92the basket? Hardaway’s signatureseason, Mitch Richmond was tradedIn 2004, two-time Olympic Goldto breathe life into a team that hadm o ve, t h e c ro s s o ve r d r i b b l e,to the Sacramento Kings and theMedalist and future Hall of Famer,not made the playoffs in 10 years.created all kinds of opportunitiesexcitement generated by the highestChris Mullin, was hired as ExecutiveNelson knew exactly how he wasfor his sharp-shooting teammates.scoring trio in the league fizzled.Vice President of Basketballgoing to do it: let the reins loose onDon Nelson put his faith in TimA few years later, Tim HardawayOperations. Two years later, Donpoint guard Baron Davis and bringHardaway to lead his offense andwas traded to the Miami Heat andNelson returned from an eight-yearNellie Ball back to Golden State.the dismantling of Run TMC wascomplete. In many ways, the riseand fall of this team reflectedAmerican greed of the 1980s and1990s. Instead of appreciating theirgood fortune and building aroundthe players that brought themsuccess, the Warriors wanted more.Mitch Richmond was a sixtime All-Star as a member ofthe Sacramento Kings.An excited Warriors squadgathers during a timeout.Trades made in an effort to get3031

Chapter 4W e B e l ie v eWhen Baron Davis came todesperate for another shot atthe Bay Area, he became the firstthe title. That said, no one couldsuperstar to don a Warriors uniformoverlook the fact that the Warriorssince Chris Mullin left for Indianaand their up-tempo style posed thenearly a decade before. By 2006,Mavericks some problems. Havingmanagement had built a teambeaten Dallas in all three regular-around Davis that included Stephenseason match-ups, the WarriorsJackson, Jason R ichardson, Alwere a confident bunch. They cameHarrington, and the young scoring-into the series with some seriousmachine drafted straight out ofswagger, and in Game 1 they backedhigh school, Monta Ellis. Engineeredto run, these Warriors caught firein the last months of the 2006–07regular season, winning 16 of thelast 21 games. They stormed into amemorable playoff series againstthe #1 seed Dallas Mavericks.Having lost in heartbreakingfashion to the Miami Heat in the 2006NBA Finals, the Dallas MavericksThe Dallas Mavericks simplycould not stay in front of speedypoint guard Baron Davis.and superstar Dirk Nowitzki were3233

Baron Davis acknowledges theecstatic Oracle Arena crowdfollowing a Game 6 win.Dubious DistinctionThere is no way to measure6, 111–86, to advance Goldena crowd’s impact on a game. NoState to the second round of thestatistic expresses a crowd’s abilityplayoffs for the first time since Runto fluster the opposing team orTMC had beaten the Spurs back inuplift their own players. But no1991. Starting the second half ofwas the first time in the history ofone can possibly deny the 2007play in Game 6, the Warriors heldthe NBA that a #8 seed had beatenOracle Arena crowd’s influencea slim two-point advantage, but aa #1 seed in a seven-game series.on the Warriors/Mavericks series.24–3 run in the third quarter keyedAnd while the Warriors eventuallyThose fans created a home-courtby four Stephen Jackson three-lost to the Utah Jazz in the Westernadvantage the likes of whichpointers put the game away. ItConference Semifinals, the thrill ofThe Mavericks joined the 1994SuperSonics, the 1999 Heat, and the2012 Bulls as the only #1 seeds to lose toa #8 seed.basketball has rarely seen. With thethat swagger up, beating Dallas, 97–motto “We Believe” stamped in blue85, on their home floor. Dallas camelettering across their gold shirts,back to tie the series at one gamethese Warriors fans were the loudestapiece, but in Games 3 and 4, theand most raucous crowd in recentMavericks got a dose of somethingmemory. The players heard them,they were unaccustomed to: anand they responded by makingenergized Oracle Arena.history.TheSuperstar Numbers2006–07WarriorswonGames 3 and 4 in Oakland andIn the 2006–07 playoffs, Davis dominated,averaging 25 points, seven assists, fiverebounds, and three steals per game.then routed the Mavericks in Game34During the 2007 Western Conference Semifinals,the Warriors became the third eight-seed todefeat a one-seed in the NBA playoffs.35

winning basketball reverberated inexpanded the playoffs to 16 teams,dominated local news as the city’sthe Bay Area for the entire offseason.a team with 48 wins did not qualifyinhabitants rallied behind workers,for a playoff spot. The “We Believe”immigrants, the unemployed, andera came to an abrupt end.the veterans of American warsThroughoutthe2007–08season, Warriors fans came outHistorically AccurateIn the 2010–11 season, second-yearguard Stephen Curry set a new Warriorssingle-season record for free throwpercentage by shooting 93.4%.in droves. Indeed, 32 of 41 homeFollowing the disappointment offought in Afghanistan and Iraq.23 games under new coach Markgames were sold out. Baron Davisbeing the best team ever to not makeThe protests called attention to theJackson. If this was a preview ofand Monta Ellis—arguably the mostthe playoffs, Baron Davis signed withissue of tax dollars being used towhat was to come, it looked likeexplosive backcourt in basketball—the Los Angeles Clippers, and a fanbail out big banks while ordinarymore tough times for Goldenled the team to a 48–34 record, theirbase unprepared to suffer anotherpeople struggling to pay theirState. But appearances were onlybest since 1994. Unfortunately, theletdown mourned the loss of theirmortgages and feed their familiesskin deep. Something special wasWestern Conference was loaded. Forstar. The next four years were marredwere overlooked and ignored. Oncebrewing in Oakland, somethingthe first time since the league hadby injuries, and Warriors fans sadlyagain, professional basketballwatched as their team fellseemed less important than thefrom contention.social and economic challengesIn 2007–08, Davis and Ellis werearguably the most explosivebackcourt in the league.36In 2010, the country wasfacing the people. And with theonce again in bad shape.Warriors finishing the 2010–11Two years into a painfulseason 10 games under .500recession

From high school gyms, to the pick-up games in the parks, to Oracle Arena, basketball is ever-present in the Bay . Atlanta Hawks Boston Celtics Brooklyn Nets . movement for Gay Rights all