What did we learn from the Warriors escaping the Rockets?

1. Here we go again

The argument against “the Warriors and LeBron ruined basketball” is that the NBA has always been dominated by dynasties. The Lakers, the Celtics, the Bulls, the Spurs. One of those four teams were always in the Finals from the 1980s until LeBron came along.

They never played the same team four times in a row.

This is the fourth straight year we’re getting LeBron’s Cavaliers against the Warriors. And this year feels like the biggest mismatch of the four. Even though the Warriors looked beatable this series. Even though they may have lost if Chris Paul doesn’t get injured. And even though they looked lazy in the first half of of the last two games. They’re still the Warriors and they still have four All-Stars.

Meanwhile, the Cavaliers are down to LeBron James and whatever is left of Kevin Love.

There is a sense of inevitability with the Warriors. Even when they trailed by double-digits in the first half of Games 6 and 7. Everyone knew the third quarter run was coming. The Rockets could not sustain that kind of energy for 48-minutes. Meanwhile, the Warriors, much like LeBron in Game 7, paced themselves. They stayed within close enough distance to where one run put them in the lead. They never looked back.

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The Finals have been inevitable. Through 82 regular season games and hot takes about the Warriors falling apart and LeBron slowing down. We’re right where we thought we would be eight months ago. The outcome feels pretty inevitable as well.