The last great NBA dynasty? The Warriors’ golden era seemingly ends, but their blueprint lives on

MINNEAPOLIS — You could see vestiges of what the Golden State Warriors used to be, what they hoped to be if everything flowed optimally.

Stephen Curry bopping and hopping, paying no mind to the defense of Nickeil Alexander-Walker, hitting a stepback triple. Jimmy Butler catching and shooting decisively, not waiting on the defense to shade his way.

But more appropriately, you saw the best of what the Warriors used to be in the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Devastating 3-point shooting. Suffocating defense. Sharing the ball selflessly.

That’s the mark the Warriors have left on the league following this glorious run, the one that seemingly came to an end Wednesday night, the Timberwolves advancing in five games with a 121-110 victory here at Target Center.

The Timberwolves advance to this round for the second straight year, both berths improbable given the lack of optimism most of the basketball world felt for this franchise. That goodwill was left toward the mainstays, which is why there was so much hope for a Curry return if his injured hamstring had improved in the break between Games 5 and 6.

Perhaps it was for the best this series didn’t extend. Not for lack of drama because a potential Curry comeback would’ve been dripping with theater, him coming out to the Chase Center faithful — the belief that a miracle would’ve been possible.

Certainly the anemic way the Warriors performed on offense Wednesday, shooting under 40 percent for most of the night, they would’ve been aided by Curry’s offensive wizardry. The Timberwolves did everything they could to gum up the ball movement offense, and even though the Warriors accomplished their game plan goals of winning the possession game and hoisting up 39 3-pointers, it was still futile.

“When you don’t have Steph on the floor, the margin for error is so much smaller, and everything has to take on more,” Butler said. “Injuries happen. But it is a lot different with Steph not out there.”

But Curry’s presence wouldn’t have helped defend Julius Randle playing the best and most controlled basketball of his career, or Anthony Edwards continuing to grow into his own as a current torchbearer.

To a man, the Warriors gave full credit to the Timberwolves, who shot 63 percent and 42 percent from 3. It’s hard not to when a team beats you four straight times, Curry being there or not. The Warriors have won two playoff series since winning the 2022 title, and each loss signaled something minute.

Losing to the Los Angeles Lakers ended an awkward season that began with Draymond Green punching Jordan Poole in training camp, which followed them all year. Losing to the Sacramento Kings in the play-in tournament last year ended the long kiss goodbye to Klay Thompson.

This one, it wasn’t like the Warriors lost to mirror images of themselves — nobody would confuse Anthony Edwards or Rudy Gobert any reasonably facsimile to players of Warriors vintage, but the how seemed telling.

Seeing Jaden McDaniels flying around on both ends sure conjured up images of a younger Andre Iguodala as the ultimate glue guy, and the Timberwolves even through their flaws took full advantage of a wounded team. They didn’t want to take any chances of Curry coming back in a Game 6.

The Timberwolves took control of the series in Game 3, when they suffocated the Warriors offense in the fourth quarter and then followed it up with another professional performance two nights later to take this commanding lead.

In a way, they were paying the best homage to the Warriors with their approach, the appropriate fear.

“They’re no longer in their dynastic phase, I would say. But the era of Golden State basketball is still rolling on and very, very relevant,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “When they’ve not been at the top in the last number of years, a lot of injury driven, which has been unfortunate for them.

“But it’s incredible what they’ve done and what they’ve built and what they’ve accomplished and in doing so, really also many ways changed how the game is played.”

A lot of discussion will revolve around “if.” If Curry was healthy. But when your foundation is around a 37-year-old, injury has to be baked in because that’s what happens to a soon-to-be 38-year old — you just hope it doesn’t happen this time of year.

“I know we had a shot. I know we could’ve gone the distance,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “But it doesn’t matter. Again, everything in the playoffs is about who stays healthy and who gets hot, you know. Are you playing well at the right time? Do you have multiple guys step up in key games, make shots, and do you have good health?”

Without the last one, there’s no point in asking the first two questions, especially if it’s Curry’s health that’s in question. The Timberwolves didn’t run out of good players while it seemed like the Warriors had more than a few who need more playoff seasoning — some simply looked out of element, and the roster has to be built to fit around the vets’ needs, especially Curry’s.

This is their lot. Green will be 36 shortly after next year’s All-Star break, Butler will turn 36 before training camp begins and Curry enters true old-head territory as he races toward 40.

Kerr, Butler and Green were optimistic about next season’s prospects given how they performed after Butler came aboard, but you wonder if that’s enough on its face to believe in.

“It is tough, but it’s tough on both sides,” Butler said. “If we’re healthy, ‘if all this and if all that, it may be different. But we’ll take our chances for sure with Steph out there. We’ll come back and figure this thing out.”

The Western Conference is increasingly a younger man’s game and asking these three accomplished-but-body-weary players to ward off that level of competition seems too much to ask without significant personnel changes.

When factoring in Butler’s extension, the Warriors have a lot of free agents — most notably Jonathan Kuminga (restricted) and managed to get under the punitive second luxury tax apron this season, which gives them some wiggle room this summer, like the non-taxpayer midlevel exception around $14 million.

“I’m excited,” Kerr said. “We’ve got Jimmy and Dray and Steph all coming back. Our young players performed really well. There’s a lot to look forward to.”

But to just to keep pace with the top of the west, the Warriors are missing something significant — even beyond the Butler acquisition, which bolstered the back end of their season.

“I think every team in the NBA feels like they need personnel help that’s not in the building,” Green said. “It has nothing to do with who’s young, who’s old. That’s the nature of the business. Contracts happen, money situations happen. But do I have confidence in our young guys that they can take the next step? 100 percent, absolutely.”

Given what occurred with Jayson Tatum, one wrong step could cost Curry and the Warriors more than just a playoff series; he’s the fulcrum of everything that’s blue and gold.

That sprawling building right off the water exists because of him. Kerr is a top-15 coach of all time because of him. Green is a champion because of him, and Butler hopes he can capture that elusive title with Curry.

You have to be lucky and good to win one championship, let alone have this sustained period of excellence.

But you have to be even more than perfect to keep this thing going longer than it has, and that’s impossible.

Missing on Moses Moody, James Wiseman and not being able to make anything work with Kuminga, all early draft picks during their down years following Kevin Durant’s defection to Brooklyn feels like it’s biting them now.

That could be unfairly nitpicking an imperfect science, and it’s ironic the Warriors have just now decided to go all-in with Curry given how they toed the line for a few years with that “two timelines” notion, and got a championship out of it with hardly any contributions from their youth.

Now, as gravity and Father Time starts to close in on the greatest shooter we’ve ever seen, you wonder if the Warriors have the stomach or the mere means to do all that’s necessary to keep up with the Joneses — or rather the Gilgeous-Alexander’s or Edwardses of the world.

The NBA’s collective bargaining agreement has made it more difficult for even the thirstiest teams to keep things alive, let alone play at more than the margins.

You wonder if it’s too late, even as the Warriors stand to look like the last great dynasty we will see for quite awhile. You wonder if by getting a little too cute, or if they didn’t believe Curry could be this excellent this long, if they cost themselves more glory.

You wonder that because you can see the sun setting more and more. You wonder that because Target Center sounded a lot like that old building in Oakland when it first started rocking.

Because we didn’t know all the wannabes didn’t have a chance, we just knew everything for the foreseeable future would run through Oracle, just like everything could very well run through Minneapolis or Oklahoma City.