This may sound preposterous now, but there was a time during the 2017-2018 regular season in which the Kevin Durant-abandoned Oklahoma City Thunder actually thought they were good.
They had twice spat thick tobacco-juice residue on the golden boots of the reigning world champions, blowing out the Golden State Warriors in two, emotionally charged affairs. The champs were amused enough by this feisty uprising to be moved to unleash a modicum of their nuclear-strength, playoff-level focus. The grumpy MVP Russell Westbrook and his inadequate cronies were turned into the basketball equivalent of target practice, as the Warriors drilled them in a 32-point beatdown in front of Dub Nation in Oakland.