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Warriors await next challenge
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THE Golden State Warriors are four wins from their third straight trip to the NBA Finals — and likely a third straight showdown with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
With four All-Stars, including two MVPs, it’s not hard to see why.
The Warriors eliminated the Utah Jazz in a sweep on Monday and are 8-0 in the postseason for the first time in franchise history. The Cavaliers, coincidentally, also swept their first two opponents.
For Golden State, the games mostly haven’t been close. Only one victory, Game 3 against the Portland Trail Blazers, was decided by fewer than 11 points, and the Warriors never trailed in three of the four games against Utah. The trio of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green has been consistently dominant, and Golden State’s elite length and athleticism on defense have been stifling.
“We are mostly impressed with how we are playing our brand of basketball,” Green said. “We really imposed our will on the other team. That’s big. In the playoffs, you let a team get in a groove and it’s hard to win games like that.”
In the Western Conference finals, Golden State will face the winner of the Spurs and Rockets, who are tied 2-2.
The Warriors are averaging a playoff-high 115.3 points per game, ahead of the Cavaliers’ 114.5. Golden State is allowing 98.8 points in the postseason to lead all teams still alive and has a playoff-best 96.9 defensive rating.
The offense has come in waves. One second, it’s Curry shining, then Durant or Green the next. All-Star Klay Thompson has been in a bit of a slump, but still scored 21 points in the 121-95 victory on Monday night.
Even as games have gotten more physical, Golden State has stayed strong on the ball and kept turnovers to a minimum, said interim coach Mike Brown. The Warriors’ 11.5 turnovers per game lead all teams still playing, and Brown thinks combining that with their elite shooting and defense makes for a peerless combination. “We feel like having good shooters and good scorers, we would rather take a bad shot than try to make a hero play.”
The Warriors have been without coach Steve Kerr since Game 3 of the first round and haven’t missed a beat. He remains out after having a spinal cord leak procedure at Duke University last Friday, and there is no timetable for his return. He and Brown speak regularly, but that’s an obstacle to overcome.
The competition will get tougher now. In the conference finals, they’ll have to deal with either San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard or Houston’s James Harden, and both players are better than any the Warriors have seen so far this postseason.
And then there’s LeBron James, likely waiting in the finals.
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