A lot of the media and basketball fans around the world thought the Golden State dynasty was dead once KD left. No chance that Steph Curry could bring another championship back to the Bay Area. The Warriors' reign over the NBA was over.

Boy, were those people wrong.

The haters also said that the past three championships were fake rings. Andre Iguodala (not Steph Curry) won it for the Dubs in the 2015 NBA Finals and the Warriors beat injured teams to get there. KD carried the Warriors to glory in 2017 and 2018.

Despite all this doubt and hate against this franchise, Curry and co. proved (once again) that they’re more than capable of winning the big one. That’s what makes the 2022 ring the most impressive one in the history of this franchise.

Don’t get me wrong, the first ring in 2015 was the sweetest cause it was unexpected and glorious to celebrate after all the disappointing seasons this fanbase had to deal with. The 2017 and 2018 banners were dominant runs by arguably the greatest team ever assembled which was an absolute blast to watch. But what it took to get the 4th title in 8 seasons? It truly means more than all the rest.

A disastrous 2019 NBA Finals ended in not only a title loss but the injury to Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant moving on to Brooklyn. A tragedy of a season followed in 2019-2020 that concluded with the Warriors having the worst record in the entire league. The 2020-2021 campaign started badly with yet another injury to Klay Thompson and a loss in the NBA Play-In Tournament wasn’t what at all what this fanbase was looking to end with. All seemed lost and the best days for the Golden State Warriors looked to be in the past.

The majority of basketball media/fans didn’t believe that the star trio in the Bay Area could get back to the mountaintop. Could Steph Curry do it again without KD? Will Klay Thompson be able to play like his old self once he comes back from his multiple injuries? Are Draymond Green’s antics too much of a distraction? Is there even enough talent in the supporting cast?

Even with these discussions going on in the background, it didn’t phase this squad at all. While dealing with all the doubt, these Warriors proved that this franchise is built on championship DNA and that this dynasty isn’t going anywhere.

The playoff path was arguably one of the toughest ones of the four championships as well. The Warriors had to go through the NBA MVP in Nikola Jokic, Ja Morant and the young guns in Memphis, Dallas led by Luka Doncic, and the #1 defensive team in the NBA in the Boston Celtics. Not a cakewalk whatsoever.

With all that being said, this season’s journey to the Larry O’Brien Trophy is even more special than the other championship runs. Congratulations to the Golden State Warriors, your 2021-2022 NBA Champions.

Follow Arden Cravalho on Twitter @a_cravalho.

(Photo credit: Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images)