The Warriors are in familiar territory.
While Golden State last made the playoffs in 2019, the team’s core is no stranger to the bright lights of the postseason as they kick off Game 1 against the Denver Nuggets at Chase Center on Saturday night.
Joe Lacob has witnessed three of the Warriors’ six NBA championships as the team’s owner -- a dynastic four-year period from 2015-18 that cemented Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green as franchise legends.
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As the trio looks to make it four titles together, Lacob considered what it would mean if the Warriors' core were to secure another championship while visiting with the NBC Sports Bay Area crew on Warriors Live: Playoff Edition ahead of Game 1.
At first, Lacob was hesitant to compare Golden State’s various playoff runs. Under Lacob’s ownership, the Dubs first made the playoffs in 2013 and 2014 before his first NBA Finals experience in 2015.
“I don’t know that you can ever replicate things, you know what I mean,” Lacob said. “Everything’s a new experience … I was a younger, more energetic guy, and [it was] certainly a first-time experience getting to the playoffs in 2013 in Denver, right? That was incredibly exciting.
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“And the subsequent years, winning a title in ‘15, I don’t know that you can replicate that. That was a great experience.”
As fans poured into Chase Center for the stadium’s first-ever playoff game on Saturday, however, Lacob acknowledged that there seemed to be something different in the air this time around.
“But this is a new experience,” he said. “And the truth is, first time in Chase. Me and a lot of the people that work with me here spent seven years of hard work building, developing -- and our team as well -- to get to this point … And for that, I’m incredibly excited.”
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Even though the playoffs are nothing new for the Warriors, playing a postseason series at Chase Center is an entirely different adventure. Lacob knows the Dubs’ core, coupled with new additions and young stars, have the talent to make it past the first round and beat the odds for yet another title.
“By the way, every team is different,” Lacob said. “So how great would it be, how incredible would it be if this group could come back these … number of years later and do it again? And that’s what we’re going to try to do.”