Why is it So Hard to Repeat as NBA Champion? An Investigation

The 2018-19 Golden State Warriors had some major issues, but still almost pulled off a title win, taking Kawhi Leonard and the Raptors to 6 games in the NBA Finals.

Kevin Durant’s pending free agency hung over the Warriors franchise all season long. It did not take long for things to get messy.

Late in a tight road game against the LA Clippers on November 12, 2018, Durant trailed Draymond Green, who was racing up the court with the ball. Durant clapped at Green in an attempt to have him pass him the ball. Green turned the ball over instead, and the two had a shouting match on the bench shortly after. The argument continued in the locker room after the game and it eventually led to Green getting suspended by the team for one game.

That tension lingered throughout the season.

In addition, the Warriors were absolutely slammed with injuries, particularly in the playoffs.

DeMarcus Cousins tore his quad, Curry dislocated his finger, Andre Iguodala strained his calf, Klay Thompson had a hamstring strain and a torn ACL, Kevon Looney fractured his collarbone, and Durant strained his calf, then ruptured his Achilles.

Durant would leave the Warriors via free agency after the season, signing with the Brooklyn Nets.

What the Knicks can learn: Take care of off-the-court business before taking care of business on the court. But the Knicks are already embroiled in contract drama as Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart are extensions talks spilled onto the front page.

Also, avoid catastrophic injuries to key players whenever possible.

The 2019-20 Raptors could have mailed it in as they were months removed from bringing the franchise its first-ever NBA championship, and Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard left via free agency to join the Clippers. The excuses for a lackluster campaign were built in.

Instead, the Raptors showed the heart of a champion - and then-some. They finished with the second-best record in the NBA at 53-19 during the COVID-19 shortened regular season.

Pascal Siakam was named an All-Star for the first time, and he made All-NBA Second Team. Kyle Lowry was at the height of his powers and Marc Gasol was still a force.

NBA play was suspended for over four months due to the pandemic, before resuming in July in the “Bubble” at Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida.

The Raptors swept the Nets in the first round of the playoffs in the Bubble, but lost to the Celtics in 7 games in the semi-finals.

What the Knicks can learn: When a key player departs via free agency or trade, someone else or multiple players on the roster must step up. Mitchell Robinson’s departure to the Celtics this past off-season pales in comparison to Kawhi leaving for the Clippers in 2020. But Andre Drummond and James Wiseman must replace Robinson’s combination of interior defense and rebounding.

Also, avoid defending your title during a global pandemic if at all possible.

Much is made about the Lakers’ 2020 NBA title deserving an asterisk, considering it took place in the Disney Bubble with no fans in attendance.

While the 2019-20 Lakers may have benefited from the COVID stoppage, the 2020-21 Lakers paid for it.

The 2020-21 NBA season began just 72 days after the Lakers won the 2020 title. It was the shortest off-season in league history.

Despite the quick turnaround, the Lakers were 21-7 in February of 2021 before Anthony Davis went down with a strained calf and Achilles tendinosis aggravation. Davis missed two months of action, and the team was never quite the same.

Even the ultra-durable LeBron James was sidelined for over 20 games down the stretch due to a high ankle sprain.

The banged-up Lakers beat the Warriors in the Play-In round to land the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference. They ultimately fell to the Phoenix Suns in six games in Round 1, however.

What the Knicks can learn: It’s been only 129 days since the Knicks broke their title drought. The 2020-21 Lakers had just a 72-day gap from winning the title to opening night of the next season due to COVID.

That said, the Knicks have been the toast of the town in Manhattan for months. A championship hangover might be literal for some players.

The Knicks must realize that this is a whole new season with a whole new set of challenges.

They must turn the page early.

It’s human nature to lose the eye of the tiger after winning it all.

The Bucks had been knocking on the door of true championship contention for several years before kicking down that door in 2021. They lost in the first round in 2018, lost in the ECF in 2019, and lost in the conference semis in 2020 before winning it all.

The Knicks were in a quite similar spot these past few years. New York lost in the conference semifinals in 2023, lost in the conference semifinals in 2024, and lost in the ECF in 2025 before winning it all.

The 2021-22 Bucks went 51-31 in the regular season, taking the 3 seed. They fell to the 2-seeded Celtics in 7 games, with Game 7 being held at TD Garden in Boston.

What the Knicks can learn: Don’t get complacent. The 2021-22 Bucks pretty much ran it back with the same crew. There’s no crime in doing that, but sustained success needs to be part of the goal as well.

Just five years after winning the title, the Bucks were more or less forced to trade their superstar in Giannis Antetokounmpo. Things can flip, fast.

Leon Rose must manage the Knicks’ books wisely. He will have to do so with a tougher set of circumstances now that the NBA’s dreaded aprons are in play. The Knicks already had an apron casualty as Mitchell Robinson wound up in Boston.

The Knicks should also not dismiss the regular season. They need one of those top seeds for homecourt advantage in the postseason.

On October 5, 2022, The Athletic reported that Draymond Green and Jordan Poole had a physical altercation at practice. One day later, TMZ posted a video that showed Green throwing a haymaker that landed on Poole’s jaw.

The Warriors did not suspend Green, opting to only fine him.

Only 10 days after the incident, the Warriors signed Poole to a four-year, $140 million extension. This garnered plenty of attention considering that the Dubs had just let Gary Payton II and Otto Porter Jr. walk in free agency.

The Warriors attempted to downplay the incident throughout the season, but it absolutely lingered. Golden State wound up as a 6 seed in the Western Conference.

Poole expressed frustration with a lack of playing time in the playoffs as Golden State was bounced by the Lakers in the second round. The Warriors would trade Poole to the Wizards in June 2023.

What the Knicks can learn: Keep the peace. Most NBA champions have players with larger than life personalities and egos. There are often internal clashes. Most don’t see the light of day. Head coach Mike Brown and team leader Jalen Brunson have done a great job of managing the Knicks’ team chemistry thus far. Will they be able to keep it up?

There was no championship hangover in the regular season for the 2023-24 Nuggets as they won more games in this season (57) than they did during their championship campaign (53), even though they lost key pieces from their 2023 team (Bruce Brown, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Jeff Green) to avoid salary cap penalties.

Winning in the playoffs, of course, is a different animal and you can’t replace championship experience on the cheap.

The Nuggets were matched up in the second round with a Timberwolves team that they had smashed, 4-1, in the first round the year prior. This season’s Minnesota team was not messing around, though, as the T’Wolves got it to a Game 7.

The Nuggets, playing at home, held a 53-39 lead over the Wolves at halftime of Game 7. Denver squandered it, as it was outscored by Minnesota 28-14 in the third quarter, and 32-23 in the fourth quarter. The result was a stunning 98-90 loss.

What the Knicks can learn: Don’t think the magic will always be there. Many NBA champions fall into a trap of believing that everything will always fall their way. They believe that championship aura will automatically carry over from one year to the next. It’s not always the case. When you have a chance to end another team’s season, you must go for the kill.

Also, pay up! Those bench guys are essential. Thankfully, the Knicks brought back their entire playoff rotation—with the exception of Mitchell Robinson.

The 2023-24 Celtics finally got the job done after years of being in the championship mix. They ran it back with pretty much the same nucleus in 2023-24 and rolled to a 61-21 record.

In the playoffs against the Knicks, however, things went downhill fast.

The Celtics blew a 20-point lead, at home, in Game 1 to the Knicks as they lost 108-105.

Incredibly, the exact same story happened in Game 2, as the C’s again blew a 20-point lead, falling 91-90.

Boston won Game 3 (115-93) at Madison Square Garden, but fell in Game 4 (121-113). Game 4 is remembered as the game in which Jayson Tatum ruptured his Achilles.

The Celtics would lose the series in six games.

While the Tatum injury is a convenient excuse for the series loss, realistic Celtics fans will admit that Boston likely would have lost the series even if Tatum had never gotten hurt.

That spring, the Knicks were proving to be much a much more mentally tough team than Joe Mazzulla’s squad.

What the Knicks can learn: Don’t ‘F’ around. No lead is safe in the NBA, particularly in the playoffs.

The Thunder thrived as defending NBA champions in the regular season, posting a 64-18 record. That was nearly as good as the 68-14 mark they recorded in their championship season.

Once again, though, the playoffs are a different beast.

Jalen Williams hamstring injury impacted OKC but they still had a handful of young wings to replace him. The Thunder became too predictable on offense in their Western Conference Finals loss to the Spurs. This was underscored in Game 4 of the WCF against San Antonio, as the Thunder shot a paltry 33 percent from the floor, and a horrendous 18.2 percent from 3-point territory. OKC also committed 20 turnovers in the game. The result was a 103-82 loss.

The young Spurs would go on to win the series in 7.

What the Knicks can learn: Be unpredictable.

The Thunder were like the football team that says, “you know which plays we’re going to run. We just don’t think you can stop it.”

Well, the 2025-26 Spurs stopped it.

The 2026-27 Knicks must show that they can win in a variety of ways. They likely will not be able to iso Brunson over and over again on their way to a back-to-back titles.