The 2014-2015 NBA Season Ends.
By early April, the 2014-2015 season officially came to a close, marking the end of a five-and-a-half-month marathon.
It was a rollercoaster season, with the three Nike-backed superteams only having one team truly live up to expectations — the Miami Heat.
On the other hand, UA's two flagship teams performed beyond anyone's wildest expectations.
The Golden State Warriors shocked everyone right from the start and maintained that momentum throughout the entire season.
They finished with an incredible 67-15 record, setting a new franchise record for wins and comfortably clinching the league's best record.
Stephen Curry averaged 24.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 8.1 assists, shooting an impressive 44.8% from three-point range. He emerged as one of the leading candidates for MVP.
Meanwhile, Steve Kerr, in his rookie season as head coach, made history by leading his team to the most wins ever for a first-year coach.
Kerr's basketball philosophy wasn't new, but he found the perfect storm — a generational talent like Curry and a league shifting towards a three-point-centric game.
...
Western Conference Standings
Behind the Warriors, the Lakers secured the second seed in the West with a 58-24 record.
There had been concerns about Kobe Bryant's health, especially after Anderson Varejao went down with a season-ending injury. But Kobe proved everyone wrong, playing 70 games and averaging 25.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.6 assists on 46.3% shooting.
LeBron James also stepped up, playing 69 games and averaging 26.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 7.4 assists, with a shooting percentage of 48.8%.
Despite losing Chris Bosh for the season, the Houston Rockets held on to the third seed with a 56-26 record, thanks to their dynamic backcourt duo.
The Oklahoma City Thunder finished fourth with 52 wins, while the San Antonio Spurs and Memphis Grizzlies both ended with 55 wins, but ranked fifth and sixth, respectively.
The Thunder's fourth-place finish — despite having fewer wins than the Spurs and Grizzlies — sparked discussions about the outdated playoff seeding system that gave division winners priority.
Fans were calling for reform, arguing that modern broadcasting and travel no longer required such outdated rules.
The Portland Trail Blazers and Dallas Mavericks rounded out the Western Conference playoffs with 51 and 50 wins, respectively.
Even without Han Sen, the West remained as competitive as ever.
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Eastern Conference Standings
In the East, the Miami Heat dominated, finishing with a 62-20 record.
Kevin Durant had a phenomenal season, averaging 28.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 5 assists, shooting 50.3% from the field. He was also considered one of the top MVP candidates.
The Atlanta Hawks surprised everyone by finishing second in the East with a 60-22 record.
They went on an impressive 12-game winning streak toward the end of the season, solidifying their position.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, led by Han Sen, finished third with a 58-24 record.
Han Sen delivered one of the most dominant individual seasons in NBA history.
He averaged:
- 31.5 points
- 6.2 rebounds
- 10.3 assists
- 3 steals
- 1.4 blocks
He shot 51.6% from the field and 38.5% from three.
Han Sen claimed the scoring title, assist title, and steals title, becoming the first player in NBA history to lead the league in all three categories in the same season.
No one had ever done it before.
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Players who had led the league in assists and steals in the same season were relatively common — five players in total, with Chris Paul being the most notable name.
Players who had led the league in scoring and steals were Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson.
But leading in scoring and assists?
That had only been done once, by Nate "Tiny" Archibald in the 1972-1973 season, when he averaged 34 points and 11.4 assists. Unfortunately, his team, the Cincinnati Royals, failed to make the playoffs that year.
Han Sen became the first player ever to simultaneously win the scoring title, assist title, and steals title in the same season!
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Behind the Cavs, the Brooklyn Nets finished fourth with 51 wins.
The Toronto Raptors followed with 49 wins, and the Chicago Bulls took sixth with 48 wins.
The Washington Wizards secured the seventh seed with 46 wins, and the Milwaukee Bucks rounded out the playoff picture with 41 wins.
The Cavaliers' first-round opponent?
The Chicago Bulls.
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The day after the regular season ended, the Cavs held a training session at Quicken Loans Arena to prepare for their upcoming first-round matchup against the Bulls.
With home-court advantage, the series would begin in Cleveland.
During practice, the arena echoed with Garnett's trash talk.
But halfway through the session, Garnett noticed something — the players weren't slacking off; they were too tense.
It made sense.
Even with Garnett in the starting lineup, only he and Han Sen had playoff experience.
Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson, and PJ Tucker were all playoff rookies.
It was like discussing human anatomy with a girl for the first time — the tension was inevitable.
After practice, Han Sen sat courtside to catch his breath when Cunningham joined him.
Technically, some of the older Cavs players also had playoff experience.
Back in Han Sen's rookie season, they had made it to the Eastern Conference Finals.
But Cunningham wasn't here to talk about the playoffs.
He wanted to talk about the MVP race.
The MVP would typically be announced after the first round of the playoffs.
If Han Sen won it, he would become a back-to-back MVP winner.
And if he did it with two different teams?
He would be the first player in NBA history to achieve that.
When Cunningham brought it up, Han simply stood up.
"Instead of wasting time thinking about MVP, why not practice with me?"
To Han, MVP didn't mean much. The only award he truly cared about was Finals MVP — because winning that meant winning a championship, and it proved his impact on the court.
Everything else?
Even Shaquille O'Neal only had one MVP.
Did anyone really think Karl Malone or Steve Nash were better players than Shaq?
Instead of the MVP award, Han was more focused on the Bulls.
The Cavs and Bulls split their four regular-season matchups, each winning two games.
The Bulls started the season strong, but Derrick Rose's injuries had caused them to stumble.
Even Jimmy Butler, who was heavily overused by Thibodeau, missed several games.
Now, both Rose and Butler were healthy.
The Bulls were arguably the most dangerous team in the bottom half of the East bracket.
The Cavs couldn't afford to take them lightly.
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While Han Sen and Cunningham stayed late after practice for extra shooting drills, the Chicago Bulls arrived at Quicken Loans Arena for their pregame workout.
After the Bulls' open practice, Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler declined interviews, but Joakim Noah stuck around to face the media.
Noah, who snatched the Defensive Player of the Year award from Han Sen last season and made First-Team All-NBA and First-Team All-Defense, had just come off the best year of his career.
This season, Noah hadn't lost a step, still putting up double-doubles with solid assists numbers. He was also the Bulls' lone All-Star this year.
When asked about the upcoming showdown with Cleveland, Noah radiated confidence.
"A lot of people haven't realized it yet, but this is the first time since 2011 that we're heading into the playoffs fully healthy. I don't care what the outside world says. I believe we're the best team. Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying: If we stay healthy, we can beat anyone — including Han Sen."
The next question came fast.
"Like how you won DPOY last season?"
Noah smirked.
"Exactly, just like that."
For years, the Bulls had been an afterthought. After Rose's injury derailed their rise as the "revival team", they slowly faded from the spotlight.
But Noah's bold remarks drew attention back to Chicago.
Maybe, just maybe, the Bulls had something special brewing this year.
After all, while Han Sen was undeniably dominant, his Cavs roster was visibly weak.
Aside from an overhyped former No. 1 pick (Kyrie Irving) and a 39-year-old Garnett, the rest of the team was mostly forgettable.
JR Smith? Sure, but most people remembered him for his antics, not his play.
After finishing his drills, Han Sen headed to a local radio show — "Up Close with Han Sen".
Initially, Han treated the weekly appearances as a chore.
But as time passed, he discovered that it was fun — and more importantly, a goldmine for hate points.
The show attracted listeners from all over the world, not just Cleveland fans. That meant wild encounters were a regular occurrence.
Some listeners asked about his personal life.
Some professed their love for him.
And, of course, some just called to talk trash.
Despite the long wait times and slim chances to get through, people would still waste their shot just to yell obscenities.
Like today, for example…
The very first caller sounded like a classic Chicago gangster. He didn't hold back.
"You'll NEVER surpass Michael! F*ck you Han!"**
The radio host cut the call immediately, but Han couldn't stop laughing.
Then, he responded on air.
"Chicago will never have another Michael. The Bulls will never rise again. That's just the brutal truth."
Ding! Mission accomplished. More hate points added.
The second caller was a Memphis fan.
"When will your statue be unveiled?"
Han smiled.
"Maybe this summer."
Initially, he thought Robert Pera's statue announcement was just a PR stunt to win over the Memphis crowd.
But it turned out, Pera was serious.
He had reached out to Han, even inviting him to participate in the design process.
Although Han had bad blood with former owner Michael Heisley, his time in Memphis was filled with fond memories. He couldn't bring himself to turn down Pera's heartfelt invitation.
Besides, having a statue before retirement?
That's legacy material.
The third caller was from Los Angeles — a Han Sen fan from Lakerland.
It sounded weird but also showed Han's growing influence.
"What's your take on the first-round matchup with the Bulls?"
Before answering, the host briefed Han on Noah's comments.
Han smiled knowingly. He wasn't surprised.
"I heard about Noah's encounter with KG," Han began. "Before he entered the league, he was a huge KG fan. When they first matched up, he tried to bond with KG. KG's response? 'Who the f*ck do you think you're talking to?' And then he spent the entire game trash-talking him."
The caller chuckled, then pressed on.
"So, are you gonna trash-talk Noah, too?"
Han grinned.
"No. But if he calls me 'sir,' maybe I'll go easy on him."
The next morning, Han woke up to a viral social media post.
A Cleveland fan, who happened to be a sci-fi enthusiast, had quoted Liu Cixin's famous novel "The Three-Body Problem":
"To destroy you, it is no concern of mine."
The fan's interpretation was spot-on.
Whether Noah talked big or showed respect, Han's response would be the same: He would lead the Cavs to victory.
...
On game day, an hour before tip-off, Quicken Loans Arena was already 80% full.
Fans piled in early because Han had revived his old pregame routine from Memphis — an epic dunk contest-style warmup session.
It was Han vs. JR Smith, two of the most explosive dunkers in the league.
The highlight?
Han's scorpion-tail dunk, which brought the house down.
The energy in the arena was off the charts before the official opening ceremony even started.
The Bulls' starting lineup was announced first.
Rose, Butler, Covington, Gibson, and Noah.
When Noah's name was called, boos rained down from the crowd.
But Noah, ever the competitor, clapped along with the boos, soaking it all in.
The mental scars from KG's trash talk might still linger, but they had also toughened him up.
Finally, it was time for the Cavs' introductions.
The crowd roared before the DJ even spoke.
And when Han Sen was the last to emerge, Quicken Loans Arena erupted.
For four long years, Cavs fans had endured heartbreak — especially last season, when the team just missed the playoffs.
But now, their hero was here.
Finally, they were contenders again.
The Cavs' starting five: Irving, Han Sen, Tucker, TT, and… Garnett.
Despite being careful with Garnett's minutes, Coach Malone decided to start him tonight.
Why?
Perhaps inspired by Han's radio show comments, Malone played his own psychological game.
Noah once got roasted by Garnett's trash talk.
So, why not start things off with that matchup?
-Chapter End-