If you were watching NBA basketball in the spring of 2007, you remember where you were when it happened. The dunk. The lift-off. The moment Baron Davis decided that physics didn't apply to him and that Andrei Kirilenko—one of the premier shot-blockers in the world—was merely a prop for a poster. It wasn't just a basket. It was a statement of intent from a franchise that had been a laughingstock for over a decade.
Baron Davis didn't just play for the Golden State Warriors; he basically willed a new culture into existence through sheer charisma and a thick beard.
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Most people look back at that era and think of the "We Believe" slogan. They think of the yellow shirts. But if you dig into the actual basketball, the Baron Davis Golden State Warriors era was a chaotic, beautiful experiment that paved the way for the Steph Curry dynasty, even if the two eras feel light-years apart in style. Honestly, without Baron, the Oracle Arena energy that the world eventually came to admire might never have reached that fever pitch.
The Trade That Changed Everything
Before February 2005, the Warriors were drifting. They were stuck in that NBA purgatory where you aren't bad enough for a top-three pick but you aren't good enough to sniff the eighth seed. Then Chris Mullin, the GM at the time, pulled the trigger on a deal with the New Orleans Hornets. The Warriors sent away Speedy Claxton and Dale Davis. In return, they got a superstar who was supposedly "injury-prone" and "difficult."
It was a gamble. It was a massive gamble.
Davis arrived in Oakland with a reputation for being a bit of a maverick. He was a powerhouse point guard, built like a linebacker but possessing the vision of a chess master. When he stepped onto the court, the vibe changed instantly. You've got to understand how bleak it was before him. We're talking about a team that hadn't seen the postseason since 1994.
The chemistry wasn't instant, though. It took the arrival of Don Nelson in 2006 to truly unlock what Baron could do. Nelson was a mad scientist. He didn't care about traditional positions. He wanted to run. He wanted small ball. He wanted chaos. Baron Davis was the perfect engine for that chaos.
The 2007 "We Believe" Miracle
You can't talk about the Baron Davis Golden State Warriors without dissecting the 2007 playoffs. It is arguably the greatest upset in the history of North American sports. The Warriors were the 8th seed. They had barely squeaked into the playoffs by winning 16 of their last 21 games. Their reward? A first-round matchup against the Dallas Mavericks, a 67-win juggernaut led by the reigning MVP, Dirk Nowitzki.
Nobody gave the Warriors a chance. Literally nobody.
But Baron was different. He averaged 25 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.7 assists in that series. He was bullying smaller guards and blowing past bigger ones. The Mavericks looked terrified. Don Nelson knew Dirk's weaknesses from coaching him previously, but Baron was the one who exploited them. He played with a level of "disrespect" that was infectious.
The atmosphere at Oracle Arena during those games was unlike anything the league had seen. It was loud. It was hostile. It was yellow. When the Warriors finished off the Mavs in six games, it wasn't just a win; it was an exorcism of years of failure.
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That Dunk on AK47
Then came the second round against Utah. While the Warriors eventually lost that series, Baron Davis provided the definitive highlight of the decade. Late in Game 7? No, it was Game 3. Baron drove the lane, rose up, and slammed it home over a 6'9" Kirilenko.
He didn't just dunk it. He flexed. He pulled up his jersey. The roof nearly came off the building.
That single play is the distilled essence of the Baron Davis Golden State Warriors experience. It was loud, slightly reckless, and undeniably cool. It didn't matter that they didn't win the championship. They won the city.
The Style of Play: Positionless Before It Was Cool
We talk a lot about the "Death Lineup" of the 2015 Warriors, but the 2007-2008 squad was the prototype. Baron was the point guard, but he was often on the floor with Stephen Jackson, Jason Richardson (or later Corey Maggette), Al Harrington, and Monta Ellis.
They played fast. Real fast.
In the 2007-08 season, the Warriors averaged 105.6 points per game. That was second in the league. For context, today that would be dead last because the league has evolved, but back then? It was revolutionary. They didn't really have a center. Al Harrington was a "stretch four" before that was a common term.
Baron was the orchestrator. He was one of the few players who could thrive in Nelson’s "Nellie Ball" system because he had the IQ to handle the freedom. He wasn't just a scorer; he was a manipulator of defenses. He would drive, draw three defenders, and whip a no-look pass to a corner three-shooter.
Why Did It End So Quickly?
The downfall of that specific era is still a sore spot for many Bay Area fans. In 2008, the Warriors won 48 games. In almost any other year in NBA history, 48 wins gets you a top-five seed. But the Western Conference was a bloodbath. They missed the playoffs entirely.
Then came the summer of 2008.
Baron Davis opted out of his contract. Most people expected him to re-sign. Instead, he shocked the world by signing with the Los Angeles Clippers. The rumors were wild. Some said he was lured by the Hollywood lifestyle—he was always interested in film production. Others said the front office, specifically Robert Rowell, didn't show him the respect (or the money) he deserved.
The departure was abrupt. It felt like the air was sucked out of the building. The Warriors immediately plummeted back into the lottery. It would take years—and the drafting of a skinny kid from Davidson—to reclaim that energy.
The Legacy of the Beard in the Bay
Is Baron Davis a Hall of Famer? Probably not based on career stats alone. But in terms of "Impact Per Minute," he’s an all-timer for Golden State.
He changed the brand. Before Baron, the Warriors were the team you played on a Tuesday night to get your bench players some minutes. After Baron, they were a "League Pass" favorite. He made it cool to wear a Warriors jersey in New York or Chicago.
He also mentored a young Monta Ellis, who would eventually become the bridge to the Curry era. You can see ripples of Baron’s flair in the way the Warriors have played for the last decade—the emphasis on the long ball, the transition game, and the belief that the crowd is a sixth man.
Misconceptions About the 2007 Team
A lot of younger fans think the We Believe team was just a bunch of shooters. They actually weren't. They were a defensive nightmare when they wanted to be. Baron Davis was a thief on the perimeter. He led the league in steals twice in his career, and during that 2007 run, his hands were everywhere. They won games by forcing turnovers and turning them into dunks before the other team could even turn around.
Also, people forget how much of a "Point God" Baron actually was. Because he was so athletic and hit such deep threes, his passing gets overlooked. He was top-ten in assists consistently. He ran the pick-and-roll with Al Harrington with surgical precision.
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Practical Takeaways: What We Can Learn from Baron's Tenure
If you’re a basketball junkie or a student of sports management, the Baron Davis era at Golden State offers a few specific lessons that still apply today.
- Culture over Scheme: You can have the best playbook in the world, but without a "tone-setter" like Davis, players won't buy in. He gave that locker room permission to be confident.
- The Power of the Fit: Baron struggled in New Orleans when the system was rigid. In Oakland, under Don Nelson, he was a superstar. The environment dictates the output.
- Don't Underestimate Sentiment: The Warriors' front office let Baron walk over contract disputes, and it cost them years of relevance. Sometimes, you pay for the "vibe" as much as the points.
- The 8-Seed Blueprint: The 2007 Warriors proved that a fast-paced, high-variance team can beat a superior, disciplined team in a short series. It's the reason why nobody wants to play a "hot" team in the first round today.
If you want to understand the modern NBA, you have to go back and watch 2007 Baron. You have to see the way he used his body to create space and the way he hunted mismatches. He was playing 2026 basketball in 2007.
To truly appreciate what's happening now with the current Warriors, you should go back and watch the "We Believe" highlights. Pay attention to how Baron handles the ball. Notice how he never looks rushed, even when the game is moving at 100 miles per hour. That’s greatness.
Next Steps for Fans and Analysts
- Watch the Game 6 vs. Dallas (2007): Don't just watch the highlights; watch a full quarter. Notice how Baron controls the tempo.
- Study the "Nellie Ball" Offense: Look at how the spacing Baron created is the direct ancestor to the "Space and Pace" era we see now.
- Check out Baron’s Media Work: He’s still heavily involved in the game and film. His perspective on the shift from his era to the modern one is fascinating and often gives better insight than mainstream color commentary.