Harrison Barnes — the Golden State Warriors' 6-foot-8, 225-pound, super-athletic small forward — swore that in 23 years on this shining blue marble, he'd never found a particularly compelling reason to take a drink of an adult beverage.
After the Warriors finished off their 105-97 win in Game 6 of the 2015 NBA Finals, completing a 4-2 series defeat of the Cleveland Cavaliers to earn the franchise's first NBA championship in 40 years.
After averaging 8.8 points and 5.8 rebounds in 32.9 minutes per game in the Finals, holding his own defensively and on the glass despite moving up a weight class to the power forward spot when the Warriors shifted to small-ball in Game 4, and making three big 3-pointers in the clinching Game 6 victory, Barnes continued to explore this brand new world of celebration at Golden State's afterparty, as detailed by Sports Illustrated's Lee Jenkins:
Two Warriors famously abstain from alcohol, Iguodala and Harrison Barnes, and both were under more pressure to drink than college freshmen. “They didn’t get me,” Iguodala claimed. “They got me,” Barnes admitted. When Barnes slipped out the door a little before 3 a.m., saying he needed to shower back at the Ritz, reserve guard Justin Holiday hollered after him: “You’re going to be asleep in 10 minutes.” Barnes, true to his word, returned. The party churned past 5 a.m.
Here's hoping young Mr. Barnes chased his Mumm Napa (and whatever followed) with a few tall glasses of water, and perhaps an ibuprofen or two before he hit the sack. Champagne hangovers are no joke, and I have to imagine that an "I just won the NBA championship" champagne hangover's the grandaddy of them all. (I also have to imagine that it's so, so worth it.)
Now, all that's left is for some enterprising Bay Area barkeep to come up with a signature "Black Falcon"-themed cocktail.
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