In all the hype that followed the Golden State Warriors‘ historically significant season and their recent first round sweep of Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans, some have been unaware of the success of Golden State’s D-League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors.
Last Sunday night, Santa Cruz topped of a league-leading 35-15 regular season with a 2-0 D-League Finals sweep of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, winning the first D-League title in Santa Cruz Warriors history.
The last time the franchise won a title was in 2007 under current Memphis Grizzlies coach, Dave Joerger, when the team was still known as the Dakota Wizards and based out of Bismarck, North Dakota. After Golden State officially purchased the team, the Warriors have made three Finals appearances, two of those headed by current head coach, Casey Hill.
“It feels amazing to be able to bring Santa Cruz the first of many championships,” Hill told LetsGoWarriors. “The support and enthusiasm they have brought to (Kaiser Permanente) Arena as well as to our community outreach programs is worthy of nothing less than a championship.”
“The group of young men we had this season is extremely special and they’re going to have an even more special experience to remember for the rest of their lives because of what the Santa Cruz family (everyone) has been able to accomplish in these three amazing years.”
As one of the four NBA teams that fully own and operate their D-League affiliate, Golden State’s close proximity with Santa Cruz has been influential to both teams’ success this year. By having Santa Cruz so close, players assigned by Golden State to Santa Cruz are seamlessly able to transition without much wear-and-tear and fatigue taking effect.
Golden State is one of the seventeen NBA teams that consistently assigns their young players to their D-League affiliates to give them playing time that otherwise wouldn’t be possible when competing for a NBA title. Young bigs like James Michael McAdoo and Ognjen Kuzmic are a couple of those guys that have had to consistently make trips in between Oakland and Santa Cruz, and both have seen progress in their basketball development.
McAdoo, who averaged 19.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.0 steals and 2.0 blocks in 33 games with Santa Cruz and earned a contract with Golden State earlier this year, spoke on Monday to senior NBA producer RC Davis on how it feels to be called a D-League champion.
“It sounds awesome,” McAdoo said. “Definitely something that I came into this year not expecting to win, but when I did get the opportunity to go down to Santa Cruz, that was the goal — to win a championship.”
“I’m just blessed by God to have been a part of that team and bring the first championship back to Santa Cruz.”
Golden State head coach Steve Kerr, who shares a great relationship with Coach Hill, took the time Monday after practice to congratulate Santa Cruz on winning the championship this year.
“I want to start by congratulating our Santa Cruz Warriors D-League affiliate [for] winning the championship,” Kerr said. “Casey Hill and his staff do a great job. It’s been a huge factor for us this year, the work they’ve done with McAdoo and Kuz.”
“It’s just been fun to see the team down there grow, the individual players, the relationship with our franchise and theirs and how important that continuity is.”
Building great relationships and prioritizing continuity is certainly an important part of what the Warriors have strived to build. The camaraderie that’s shared between Golden State and Santa Cruz is incredibly apparent considering the multiple times a couple of the Golden State players have gone down to watch Santa Cruz games.
One such time was when Stephen Curry went to Kaiser Permanente Arena during the D-League Showcase to support his brother, Seth, who was then playing for the Erie Bayhawks. Seth played for Santa Cruz last season on averages of 19.6 points and 5.8 assists.
Returning to Santa Cruz this year was Seth’s backcourt mate, Mychel Thompson, who is the older brother to Golden State’s Klay Thompson. Klay made an appearance on Sunday to witness his brother’s team hoist the championship trophy and spoke on it during Golden State’s practice on last Monday.
“Really proud of that team and him (Mychel),” said Klay. “They played hard all year, they’re the most talented team in the league and the atmosphere is great. It was a ton of fun.”
Right beside Steph and Klay when they made their respective appearances in Santa Cruz was Warriors enforcer, Draymond Green. While he may not have a brother on the team, Green’s love for the game is renowned, and he spoke Monday on what lesson could be learned from Santa Cruz’s winning season.
“Those guys got it done and we want to try to do the same thing,” Green said. “So if there’s anything you can learn [from Santa Cruz], it’s how to be a champion.”
When asked whether he had any advice for Kerr moving forward into the playoffs, Coach Hill humbly deferred, instead choosing to praise Kerr and share his appreciation for Kerr and the Warriors organization.
“This is the first championship I’ve ever won and Coach Kerr is a seasoned veteran at these types of situations,” Hill said. “All I can say is thank you to him for the opportunity to be a part of this special and historic year in Warriors history. It’s been an honor to be involved with such a class organization.”
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