The ramifications of the Golden State Warriors winning the 2018 Western Conference Finals are still affecting the Houston Rockets.
The 2018 Western Conference Finals was one of the most explosive playoff series of the decade. A brutal showdown between the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets had a seven-game finish that few will ever forget.
Rockets GM, Daryl Morey, certainly hasn’t forgotten. In a recent episode of Bill Simmon’s podcast, Morey said that he believes the Rockets win that series 60-70 percent of the time.
As we all know, the Rockets held a 3-2 series lead over the Warriors before their star point guard, Chris Paul, suffered a torn hamstring. Subsequently, the Rockets missed an unfathomable 27 consecutive 3-pointers in Game 7 to seal their fate.
Led by Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant, the Warriors avoided elimination and went on to sweep the Cleveland Cavaliers en route to their third NBA title in four seasons.
For the Rockets, this felt like their best chance at winning a championship over 20 years. Lifted by James Harden‘s MVP season, the Rockets won 65 games and were the top team in the entire league.
Since then, both teams have undergone some serious changes. The Rockets are still a top team in the West but are now competing with a superstar tandem of Harden and Russell Westbrook. This mad scientist experiment has helped Houston jump out to a 12-6 record.
As for the Dubs, things have taken a drastic turn for the worst. Durant is in Brooklyn while Curry and Klay Thompson sit patiently on the sidelines recovering from significant injuries.
The Rockets are still scrapping to capitalize on their championship window while the Warriors attempt to pull themselves back together after five straight trips to the NBA Finals.
We can argue all day on who would have won the 2018 Western Conference Finals had each team been fully healthy. However, those conversations are simply hypothetical. This series will forever go down as a win for the Warriors.