At the start of his second season as the Lakers' head coach in 2012, Brown was tasked with melding Dwight Howard and Steve Nash into a group that featured Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol. [...] just four years later, he is the lead assistant coach for a Warriors team many consider the best collection of talent ever assembled. "This group, not only are they extremely talented, but what I like about them is they're just great guys," Brown said after a recent Warriors practice. Any semblance of competitive balance in the NBA evaporated July 4 when Kevin Durant announced his intention to sign with Golden State. A player with seven All-Star appearances, six All-NBA selections, four scoring titles and the 2013-14 MVP award was joining the only 73-win team in league history. Four players now on the Warriors were All-NBA picks last season, a feat not even Michael Jordan's Bulls or Magic Johnson's "Showtime" Lakers could boast. The team that nearly beat Golden State in the Western Conference finals, the Thunder, is left aiming for a top-four seed after the face of its franchise bolted for its chief rival. The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook had Golden State at 2-3 odds to win the league title as of...