The Los Angeles Clippers recently made some innocuous comments about how the Warriors’ championship run involved, gasp, luck and good health.
J.J. Redick pointed this out in a recent post on Grantland:
“Ours might only be open another couple of years. But you need some breaks. Golden State was the best team in the league, but they also had everything go right for them. They didn’t have one bad break. I don’t have any doubt about the DNA of our team.”
Doc Rivers echoed Redick’s claim, while specifically calling out the Warriors for not having to play the Clippers or the Spurs to reach the Finals (why the Warriors should be dinged for beating the teams in front of them is anyone’s guess):
“You need luck in the West,” he says. “Look at Golden State. They didn’t have to play us or the Spurs. But that’s also a lesson for us: When you have a chance to close, you have to do it.”
Now, some of the Warriors have been hitting back at the Clippers’ subtle shots. Klay Thompson recently noted that he was looking forward to playing the Clippers in last season’s playoffs but “they couldn’t handle their business.” As for MVP Stephen Curry, he took a much more diplomatic route in addressing the preseason spat.
Full Curry quote on other teams talking pic.twitter.com/C1j2IZmPu5
— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) October 13, 2015
Now that is how one issues a non-apology. All politicians and winners of championships (because winning a championship at any level requires health and a little luck) should take note.
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