NBA: Why Warriors Restructured And Are Finals Contenders, Lacob Explains

The Golden State Warriors made their fifth straight NBA Finals earlier this year but their chance of completing a three-peat was ended by fitness issues to key players and a well-oiled Toronto Raptors machine led by Kawhi Leonard. And with the change of personnel that has occurred with the franchise this summer many are predicting it is the end of the Warriors dynasty but co-owner Joe Lacob does not agree and has a message for all the doubters.

"There are nine or 10 teams that legitimately have a shot, or they think they do," Lacob told NBC Sports Bay Area Tuesday, as quoted on Yahoo Sports. "That's great for the league. And we're one of those teams."

The Warriors went through major changes this offseason losing two-time NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant, who joined Brooklyn Nets in free agency, 2015 NBA Finals MVP Andre Iguodala was traded to Memphis Grizzlies and third point guard Shaun Livingston with whom they completed a buyout. They also lost four-time All-Star Klay Thompson to an ACL injury which is likely to see him miss almost the entire 2019-20 campaign.

Steve Kerr’s team acquired D’Angelo Russell from the Nets this summer but will go into the new campaign with just three players - Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Kevon Looney – with more than 1 year experience as a Warrior. Lacob believes it will take until the All-Star break – when they expect Thompson to return – to figure out where the team is compared to the rest, even though at the moment they are not considered among the top five in the NBA.

"By All-Star break, we're going to see where we are," Lacob said. "I personally have great faith in our coaching staff and our players. I like any team that has Steph, Klay and Draymond. When you add D'Angelo Russell to that, I'll take that."

"I don't know of any other team that has more than two All-Stars, and we have four. From that standpoint, we have a shot to be pretty good by the second half of the year,” he added, and according to Yahoo Sports, his calculations about the All-Stars are accurate at least for the moment.

Lacob also revealed that the Warriors had to think of restructuring the team more aggressively this summer after Durant decided to leave after three successful seasons with the team. But he is happy they signed Russell, who is just 23-year-old and already an All-Star and therefore, he is hopeful they can still be among the teams contending for the titles at the end of the season.

"When he came here, he chose us," Lacob said of Durant. "We had three great years. Two championships. Three Finals. He chose, for whatever reason – I can't tell you because I don't know, exactly – to do something different."

"So, we had to be aggressive about the transition, more aggressive than we might have been otherwise. We were fortunate to get D'Angelo Russell, a 23-year-old All-Star. And all of a sudden, we still have four All-Stars. Maybe not Kevin Durant, but four All-Stars. And we got younger."