It happened fast. One minute the NBA was a league of bruising power forwards and "inside-out" basketball, and the next, a skinny kid from Davidson was pulling up from 35 feet while a 6'7" guy played center. The Golden State Warriors 2015 championship wasn't just a trophy win; it was a total system shock that people are still arguing about today.
Honestly, if you look back at the preseason odds in 2014, nobody—and I mean nobody—saw this coming. The Spurs were the defending champs. LeBron had just returned to Cleveland to form a new "Big Three." The Warriors? They were a fun playoff team that had just fired Mark Jackson and hired a guy, Steve Kerr, who had zero coaching experience. It felt like a recipe for a "learning year," not a 67-win juggernaut that would change how basketball is played at every level, from the pros down to middle school gyms.
The Luck Argument That Won't Die
You've heard it before. "They got lucky."
Critics love to point out that the Warriors didn't have to face the Spurs or the Clippers that year. They'll tell you that every team they played in the Western Conference playoffs had an injured starting point guard. Jrue Holiday was banged up for the Pelicans, Mike Conley had a literal broken face for the Grizzlies, and Patrick Beverley was out for the Rockets. Then, of course, the big one: the Finals.
LeBron James essentially had to play the Golden State Warriors 2015 championship series by himself after Kyrie Irving broke his kneecap in Game 1 and Kevin Love was already out with a dislocated shoulder.
But here’s the thing: you can only play who is in front of you. And the 2015 Warriors were historically dominant regardless of the opposition's health. They had a net rating of +11.4. In the history of the NBA, only a handful of teams—the '96 Bulls, the '71 Bucks—have ever touched that level of statistical dominance. They weren't just winning; they were embarrassing people.
Steve Kerr and the Five-Man Death Squad
When Kerr took over, he did something radical. He moved David Lee, a former All-Star making huge money, to the bench. He inserted Draymond Green into the starting lineup. At the time, Draymond was a "tweener"—too small to be a power forward, too slow to be a wing.
It turned out he was the most important defensive player of the generation.
The real shift happened in the Finals against Cleveland. The Warriors were down 2-1. They looked rattled. The Grit-and-Grind Cavs, led by a superhuman LeBron and a surprisingly pesky Matthew Dellavedova, were mucking up the game. That’s when Nick U'Ren, a 28-year-old video coordinator, suggested starting Andre Iguodala and moving center Andrew Bogut to the bench.
The "Death Lineup" was born.
By playing 6'7" Draymond Green at center, the Warriors forced the Cavs to defend the entire perimeter. Tim Mozgov, Cleveland's giant center, became a liability overnight. The Warriors won three straight games to close out the series. It was the moment the "Small Ball" era officially arrived. It’s kinda wild to think that a video coordinator’s suggestion changed the trajectory of the NBA for the next decade.
Steph Curry: The Gravity of a Superstar
We talk about the shooting, but we don't talk enough about the "Gravity."
In 2015, Stephen Curry won his first MVP, averaging 23.8 points and 7.7 assists. Those numbers look almost quaint by today's standards, but the impact was seismic. Because Steph could shoot from literally anywhere across the half-court line, defenses had to pick him up at 30 feet.
This opened up the "4-on-3" game.
Defenders would double-team Steph on the pick-and-roll, he’d dump it to Draymond in the middle, and Draymond would find an open cutter or a corner three. It was beautiful. It was "The Beautiful Game," a term Kerr borrowed from the Spurs. They led the league in assists. They led the league in pace. They proved that you could actually win a title while having the most fun on the court.
The Iggy MVP Controversy
One of the weirdest parts of the Golden State Warriors 2015 championship legacy is the Finals MVP trophy. Andre Iguodala won it. To this day, he is the only player to win Finals MVP without starting a single game during the regular season.
The logic was that he "held" LeBron James to 35.8 points, 13.3 rebounds, and 8.8 assists.
Wait, "held" him to that?
LeBron was so statistically insane in that series that people actually debated giving him the MVP despite his team losing. Iguodala won because he was the primary defender who made LeBron work for every single bucket, and his insertion into the starting lineup flipped the series. Still, many fans feel Steph was robbed. Curry averaged 26 points and 6 assists in those Finals. In any other year, that’s a lock for the trophy.
Why 2015 Was Different From the KD Years
People tend to lump all the Warriors titles together, but the 2015 run was pure. There was no Kevin Durant "cheat code" yet. This was a homegrown team. Steph, Klay, and Draymond were all drafted by the Warriors. Harrison Barnes was a lottery pick they developed. Even the bench guys like Shaun Livingston—who came back from a career-threatening knee injury—felt like part of a cohesive, organic project.
There was a joy in 2015 that vanished later on. By 2017 and 2018, the Warriors were the villains. They were "ruining the league." But in 2015? They were the underdogs. They were the team that "couldn't win because jump-shooting teams don't win championships," according to Charles Barkley.
Barkley was wrong.
The Warriors didn't just win; they blew the doors off the building. They proved that ball movement and spacing weren't just gimmicks. They were the future.
Statistical Breakdown of the 2015 Run
If you want to understand how good they actually were, look at the numbers that don't usually make the highlight reels.
- Defensive Rating: They were #1 in the league. Everyone talks about the threes, but they won because they could switch everything on defense.
- Assist Percentage: They assisted on over 66% of their field goals.
- The 3-Point Gap: They made 883 threes in the regular season. The league average was around 640. They were playing a different math game than everyone else.
The Aftermath and Lessons Learned
What can we actually take away from the Golden State Warriors 2015 championship?
First, coaching matters. Mark Jackson had the same roster and won 51 games with a mid-tier offense. Steve Kerr took that same roster and turned them into a 67-win offensive machine. He unlocked the latent passing ability of Draymond Green and the off-ball movement of Klay Thompson.
Second, versatility is king. The Warriors weren't just a "small" team. They could play big with Andrew Bogut and Festus Ezeli when they needed to protect the rim, or they could go tiny and fast.
Actionable Takeaways for Basketball Fans
If you're looking to understand the modern NBA, you have to go back and watch the tape from this specific season.
- Watch the "Off-Ball" Movement: Don't just watch the guy with the ball. Watch how Klay Thompson uses screens to create gravity even when he doesn't touch the rock.
- Study Draymond’s Positioning: Most of what Draymond does doesn't show up in a box score. Watch his "help defense" rotations from the 2015 Finals.
- Analyze the Transition Threes: Before 2015, taking a pull-up three on a fast break was considered a "bad shot." The Warriors turned it into the most efficient weapon in sports.
The 2015 Warriors were the bridge between the old NBA and the one we see today. They weren't just a flash in the pan. They were the start of a dynasty that would define a decade of basketball history. Whether you think they were "lucky" or "revolutionary," you can't deny that they changed the game forever.
To really appreciate what happened, you should look into the specific play-calling shifts Steve Kerr implemented that season—specifically how he integrated Triangle Offense elements into a high-pace system. Comparing the 2014 shot charts to the 2015 shot charts shows a massive migration of mid-range jumpers moving to the corners. It’s a masterclass in modern efficiency.