SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors unveiled their 2021-22 NBA championship banner and handed out their rings Tuesday night ahead of the regular-season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers.
“It takes resiliency to win a title, and resiliency is what defines this Warriors team,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said during the ceremony.
Stephen Curry stood to the side, emphatically cheering as he watched each of his teammates receive their rings. As he walked toward center court to receive his, MVP chants broke out throughout Chase Center.
“Hold up,” Curry told them. “We have some other work to do before that.”
“This is a very special night,” he said. “From Game 6 in 2019 in Oracle to Game 6 of 2022, it’s been a very long journey.”
Draymond Green, left, Klay Thompson, right, joined their Warriors teammates in getting new title rings to go with their seventh NBA championship in a pregame ceremony on Tuesday. Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports
Curry also took a moment to wish Brittney Griner — a WNBA player for the Phoenix Mercury — a happy 32nd birthday. Griner has been detained in Russia since mid-February.
Following the presentation of the rings — a 16-carat, yellow diamond ring — a video played on the jumbotron of owner Joe Lacob stating that the Warriors needed more banners. The video was from 2010.
Drake’s “Big Rings” blared from the speakers as the Warriors’ seventh championship banner — and their fourth in the last eight years — was raised.
A few days before the game, star guard Klay Thompson said he would have trouble sleeping on Monday in anticipation of Tuesday’s festivities.Meanwhile, power forward Jonathan Kuminga said he forgot ring night was happening.
Juan Toscano-Anderson, who currently plays for the Warriors, was the first to receive his ring. A native of Oakland, Calif., Toscano said earlier in the day that he purchased courtside seats for his mother to watch the game.
Ahead of the ceremony, center James Wiseman told ESPN that he was excited about the pregame ceremony, but he had some butterflies because it was both his first ceremony, and it was also his first season-opener since his rookie year in 2020. After all, the team still had a game to play after the ceremony.
“Before we head out, we know it’s going to be fun, we know it’s going to be emotional,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said before the game.