In Miami, Golden State Warriors Face Facts About 'Dynasty' Talk

MIAMI — The Miami Heat and Golden State Warriors must see eerie, funhouse-mirror versions of themselves in each other.

The Heat veterans must flash back two years, when the Big Three functioned as a traveling circus, with a vicious small-ball attack and the planet's best player.

In the Heat, the Warriors see an ominous forewarning: NBA dynasties aren't built to last forever. 

LeBron James' departure and Chris Bosh's absence have left the Heat treading water. And it evokes other history lessons: that Michael Jordan twice snapped Chicago's title runs with retirements. That egos halted the Los Angeles Lakers from riding the Kobe Bryant-Shaquille O'Neal duo to infinite rings. That injuries kept the Oklahoma City Thunder from even once realizing their championship potential.

Is that the biggest motivation behind the Warriors' march down their unprecedented path?

"They know how special this is," Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said, referring to his players. "They know how lucky that all of us are in this organization to be a part of what's happening. Miami knows exactly what we're going through. They had their own special run. ... When you have the best team and a great team and the chance to win a title and maybe more, you have to ride that as long as you can."

Two seasons ago, Miami sat atop the hoops world after making its fourth consecutive Finals appearance. Behind the star-studded trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the Heat won two titles and 71.8 percent of their games from 2010-14.

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There are few remnants left from that squad, save for the two championship banners that hang in AmericanAirlines Arena.

James left his-co-stars for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014 and took his annual Finals ticket with him. Only three of James' former teammates remain on the roster: Wade, Udonis Haslem and Bosh, who's battling blood clots for the second straight year.

That's why when Wade sees the Warriors, he remembers how fun—and how fleeting—that level of success can be.

"I've been there before," he said earlier this season. "I know how it looks, I know how it feels and I can see that same look on them, just that confident swagger. I see it and I'm like, 'Man, we had that.' When you don't have it no more and you're trying to get back to it, that's the frustrating part about trying to compete for a championship.

"But they have it. So don't take it for granted. Enjoy it while you have it."

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The Dubs seem to have the enjoyment aspect down pat.

"Nobody Will Ever Touch This Again"

The Warriors' appeal transcends sports. Fans flock like crazed paparazzi, some dropping the down payment on a house for courtside seats, others arriving hours early to watch Stephen Curry's unique warm-up.

"It's kind of been like the whole rock star-type thing," Draymond Green said. "Everywhere you go, there's people there waiting."

Golden State embraces the spotlight with an almost Harlem Globetrotters-like style of play. With off-the-bus shooters, above-the-rim finishers and a slew of crafty creators to bring everything together, their execution—and reaction to it—is a hoops show unlike any other.

And as was the case with the Heatles, there's just as much substance as style.

The Warriors (51-5) have the most wins through 56 games in NBA history. Their plus-11.38 average margin of victory is the fifth-highest ever recorded. They hold elite ranks on both sides of the ball and are by far the league's best-shooting team.

Category	Statistic	NBA Rank
Offensive Rating	112.5	First
Defensive Rating	99.9	T-Third
Net Rating	Plus-12.7	Second
True Shooting Percentage	59.2	First
Assist Percentage	68.5	First

They will likely threaten or break the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls' record of 72 wins. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, a reserve sniper on that Windy City demolition squad, said when that bar was set, he thought, "Nobody will ever touch this again."

Golden State doesn't see it that way.

"Tomorrow Isn't Always Guaranteed"

"Absolutely, we want to break [the record]," Green said. "We didn't come into the season saying, 'Oh man, we need to do this so we can get 72-10.' It's kind of something that just happened. And now we're right there, so it's something that we want to finish out."

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This type of opportunity rarely knocks. When it does, one can only embrace all angles of it: the pressure, the expectations, the constant barrage of questions, the target on the back.

But as Wade can attest, this can all be lost in an instant:

On paper, the Warriors look like they're built for longevity.

Curry is in the heart of his prime at 27 years old, while Green (25), Klay Thompson (26) and Harrison Barnes (23) should all be climbing toward their own. It will cost money to keep this core—Barnes is a restricted free agent this summer, and Curry will be unrestricted in 2017—or perhaps upgrade it, but the reward would be priceless—banners, records, even years of dominance.

But it's rarely that simple, and the players on the ground floor know it.

"The biggest thing we try to do is live in the moment," Barnes said. "In this league, teams can change very quickly. Tomorrow isn't always guaranteed. So we just want to try to enjoy this ride for however long it's going to be."

Amid the hoopla-creating, history-making madness that is basketball's newest superpower, there exists an acute awareness of the finite nature of this euphoric state.

Kerr summed it up simply: "It doesn't last long in the NBA."

All quotes obtained firsthand. Statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com. Salary information obtained via Basketball Insiders.