"We gonna be championship."
Leandro Barbosa cemented his place in the hearts of Warriors fans forever with one of the most endearing quotes in franchise history. As it turned out, Barbosa proved to be right.
The energetic combo guard said those words following a regular-season victory in March of 2015, roughly three months before the Warriors went on to win their first championship in 40 years. Steve Kerr, who was still a rookie NBA head coach at the time, was instrumental in bringing "The Blur" to Golden State after previously being the Suns' general manager while Barbosa was in Phoenix.
Kerr is currently serving as an assistant coach for Team USA at the FIBA Basketball World Cup, and he and Barbosa had a chance to reunite Monday when the Americans took on Brazil.
Coach @SteveKerr & @TheBlurBarbosa! #FIBAWC #WorldGotGame pic.twitter.com/Ehx09qKHeo— NBA (@NBA) September 9, 2019
Team USA prevailed 89-73 to finish undefeated in group play, thereby securing a 2020 Olympic bid. With the Americans now having a favorable matchup to begin the quarterfinals, Kerr is in great position to, in the words of Barbosa, "be championship" once again.
