West: Everyone but Warriors 'playing for second place'
Jerry West is no longer a member of the Golden State Warriors' front office, but that doesn't mean he's lost confidence in his old organization.
While a number of Western Conference teams have made huge additions this summer, the Los Angeles Clippers executive still believes the Warriors will dominate the NBA during the upcoming campaign.
"Everyone talks about, 'Well, this team is loading up to beat the Warriors,' right? Well, everyone's playing for second place right now," West told The Athletic's Tim Kawakami.
Despite having 10 players hit free agency, Golden State managed to retain its core this offseason, agreeing to multi-year contracts with Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala, and Shaun Livingston. West, however, left his position on the team's executive board for a similar role with the Clippers.
"I think when Kevin Durant and Steph leave there, they'll be right up with the two most iconic names in that city. With those two - and I'm talking about Mr. Mays and Mr. Montana," West said. "You see the ratings they get on cable? My God, it's just mind-boggling; they just have this ability to excite and capture the imagination of all these young kids. To me, that's the beauty of it. Young kids, you can't fool them. I think with those guys out there, it's hard to fool anyone. You see the greatness of these people.
"That's why I don't think this team can be beat, I really don't, and I hope I don't put a jinx on them. I'd like to see Kevin in particular win more championships."
The Warriors open their season Oct. 17 versus the Houston Rockets.