THE Golden State Warriors did everything right. They were patient, not diving into the temptation of trading Klay Thompson in exchange for different pieces ranging from Kevin Love to Bradley Beal. Reports have it that Jerry West, then a team consultant, vetoed the Kevin Love trade.

The team’s decision makers, from the owner to the coaching staff, were divided on the decision of trading for Love. This was in 2015, and Love was a bonafide top 10 NBA player. It made a lot of sense. Who needs two shooters on the floor when they can have a top rebounder with range?

But West knew Klay was something special. He’s more than just Steph’s sidekick, and that has paid off for the Dubs. They won four titles in the next eight years. To be fair, Love did get his playoff appearance and a title, but with Cleveland and not Minnesota. Incidentally, Love was traded for a first overall pick that became Andrew Wiggins. Wiggins was traded to Golden State where he won an NBA title.

The Warriors are in a perfect place. They have the best veteran talent. They also have effective role players in Gary Payton 2nd, Kevon Looney and Otto Porter. They even have prime talent in the freezer with Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody and James Wiseman. They seem to be unbeatable. Nothing at all can break the Golden State Warriors’ stranglehold of the Larry O’Brien trophy.

The $400-million question The NBA has a salary cap, and this year, it is pegged at $121 million. But it is filled with different exceptions, specifically, the Bird Rights which allows a team to go over the cap to sign their own free agent. Thus, the salary cap is a soft cap.

They used the Bird rights to prevent players from leaving the team that drafted them (actually, it’s to prevent your star big man from moving to the Lakers). That’s why the mother team can offer a five-year contract, other suitors can only offer four.

The rationale of the league is to eliminate the advantage of big market teams like the Lakers and Knicks. It also rewards good drafting. They want those genius teams to keep the players they drafted rather than those spoiled fan-bases who just pluck out other teams’ stars.

The measure still did not prevent Kevin Durant from forming a super team, and so did LeBron. But the Warriors have a chance to form a semi-homegrown super team. Theoretically, they can renew all their free agents, including the undrafted guys they acquired on cheap deals. The 29 other teams, however, can offer bigger deals and better opportunities.

The annual salary could reach $400 million to 425 million. That’s because the penalty that the NBA imposed for teams who exceed the threshold (pegged at $149 million) is the dreaded luxury tax. For every dollar a team spends above $149 million, they need to pay $1 in “luxury tax.” So, if your payroll is over $30 million over the cap, you will pay another $30 million in taxes. Instead of spending $179 million, you actually spend $208 million.

Is $400 million too expensive for an NBA champion team? There are never any guarantees to win a title. If any major player gets injured, you lose your shot, but you still need to pay the contracts. The hope is that some of the Warriors’ players would stay on the team even for less money. But that move is done by superstars who earn from endorsements. Former G-League journeymen like Jordan Poole and Gary Payton 2nd would really want their paychecks.

It would be a shame if a championship team would break up just because a team tried to avoid the luxury tax. The 2011 Dallas Mavericks and the 2012 Oklahoma City Thunder (Western Conference champions) were guilty of that, and are still being criticized until now.

Father Time is undefeated, but the Money Master is not far behind. Money can achieve what 29 NBA teams could not do: defeat a healthy Golden State Warriors.