TORONTO — Throughout their five-year run as the NBA’s most hunted team, the Golden State Warriors have found themselves in a few difficult spots. Not many of them, mind you, but enough to understand the pressure of needing to win a game on the road under arduous circumstances.
They were down two games to one to Memphis way back in their first championship season in 2015 and again in that year’s Finals against the Cavs. There was the 3-1 hole they crawled out of in the 2016 conference finals against Oklahoma City and they faced down a 3-2 deficit in the same round last season against the Rockets.
That we can name them all in the span of a few sentences speaks to their overall dominance during this run. It’s hard to feel the threat of urgency when you’re constantly running several laps ahead of the competition. But when that threat becomes real, as it did after losing Game 1 of the Finals to the Raptors, that’s when all of this becomes well, fun.
“Frankly, it’s fun to be in these environments, to be challenged, to be threatened,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “Especially because the Canadian fans are so nice that even when they’re harassing us they do it in a very polite manner.”
Good line, but let’s get back to the fun part.
“It’s actually pretty simple,” Kerr said. “The execution of it is not simple, but when you watch it on tape, okay, this is what we have to do, and then are we good enough to do it? That’s what make it’s fun. You get to test yourself.”
This is the part of competition that only those in the arena can truly understand. What makes an accomplishment special is not the victory itself, but the possibility of failure. The Warriors have rarely had to contend with that kind of challenge over the years, but when they have been pressed, they have responded with some of the best basketball anyone has ever seen.
The latest evidence of that came in the second round of the playoffs when they ran the Rockets off their home floor without Kevin Durant, who has been out with a calf injury. There was magic in the way they played and an energy in their performance that night that only a select few teams have ever been able to generate. That’s a big reason why they entered this series as favorites even without their superstar, to say nothing of home-court advantage.
Make no mistake, the Raptors pose a serious test for Golden State. Any team with an MVP-caliber player like Kawhi Leonard commands immediate respect, obviously. But the Raps also come armed with a magnificent defense and a rotation full of heady veterans who can pass and space the floor with their shooting.
Not for nothing does Kerr keep noting that the Raptors remind him of his own team in the way they play. That, in and of itself, is an exceptional compliment and a testament to how much respect the Warriors have already gained for Toronto.
There’s a huge difference between losing one game and facing elimination, of course. But if this isn’t the biggest threat the Warriors have faced, it certainly is a unique situation for them to be down a game on the road needing to steal one before they even set foot on their home floor.
Since losing Game 1, the Warriors have not only appeared confident, but even energized by the prospect. So I put it to Steph Curry, is this situation fun for you?
“It would have been way more fun being up 1-0,” Curry said. “But it’s definitely fun in terms of the challenge of being on this stage and understanding one game doesn’t define a series. It’s an opportunity for us tomorrow to come out and get one, be 1-1 going back home, which any road team would love that opportunity.
“The things that we need to do differently as a team in order to win is the stuff that is the special part about the challenge — energy, effort, focus for 48 minutes. Being on this stage again, no matter what the experience is, we’re playing in the NBA Finals and we’re chasing a championship and everything that comes with it is what wakes us up in the morning, puts a smile on our face.”
Because they are so good, the Warriors have rarely had the opportunity to test themselves to this degree. After losing the 2016 Finals to the Cavaliers— the only time they’ve truly stumbled — they responded by adding Durant in free agency. They proceeded to lose only one game during that postseason. Even after surviving the Rockets the following season, the Finals ended up being a mostly non-competitive sweep.
Since adding KD, the threat — if there was one — has been more of an existential dilemma. Could they fight through complacency and boredom and still turn it up when it really mattered? That’s a different kind of mental challenge and while the Warriors have occasionally lapsed over the years, all that proves is that they are human.
When they have been legitimately challenged, their energy picks up and the focus becomes greater. This has been described as confidence in some quarters and arrogance in others, but all of it is earned and that’s what makes this group special. Call it the champion’s prerogative and it’s one of the Warriors most enduring, and even endearing, traits that they know how good they are.
“We understand what it takes,” Draymond Green said. “We know what each of us are capable of and we hold ourselves to a higher standard than most people. I think people hold us to a higher standard, but we hold ourselves to an even higher standard. So when we feel we’re falling short of that, we’re not afraid to say it.
“And I think that’s important in a championship culture, to be able to self-regulate. You don’t always need the coach to tell you something. You don’t always need teammates to tell you something. You have to know that within yourself and you present that and you do something about it.”
They will have that chance to do something about in front of a polite, but oh so hostile crowd. The vibe around this city is an intoxicating mix of festive optimism that never seems to wane. If the Raptors and their fans had any lingering doubts that they belonged on this stage, those are gone now too.
This is what we all came here to witness: To see the Warriors put to the test and challenged in a way they rarely have before. One thing’s for sure, Game 2 will be an awful lot of fun.
Say What?!
“The takeaway is that life was a lot simpler back then. All you had to do was if you wanted to avoid it, was avoid the morning paper and don’t turn on talk radio between three and five o’clock. That was it. There were barely any other outlets for this stuff. So now, you know, we’re all addicted to our phones, we all get fed this constant criticism and judgment. And our players are fair game for everybody on not just a daily basis but an hourly and minutely basis. So it takes a lot of discipline to be able to play through that and not let that affect you.”
—Warriors coach Steve Kerr on what it was like back in his day.
Reaction: The constant criticism and judgment, as Kerr put it, is really the thing. I’ve seen so many players dive headfirst into their phone right after games to see what people have been saying, and that doesn’t seem like a particularly healthy way of living, to be honest.
“You got to take your hat off to him. Regardless of this game, you still have to take your hat off to him, even before this game, of what he’s been able to accomplish this year. He’s become a guy. He put a lot of work in to get there and I respect that, but like I said, I got to take him out of the series and that’s on me.”
—Warriors forward Draymond Green on Pascal Siakam.
Reaction: He’s become a guy is my new favorite honorific compliment.
“Well, obviously the city’s excited, right, and the fan base and the whole country, really. And that’s neat. That’s a neat feeling. I think there’s some real like heartfelt pride, for real, you know, and that’s kind of cool. But all the other places I’ve been and have been a little bit smaller markets than this, they were pretty excited in Des Moines, Iowa when we were playing in the championship of the D-League Finals. I know that sounds funny. In fact, I was trying to tell Kawhi that the other day, and he’s like, I’m not listening. I had to show him some pictures of 14,000 people actually showing up for a D-League Finals game.”
—Raptors coach Nick Nurse.
Reaction: I would pay real Canadian currency to have witnessed that interaction.
“I think it’s a question that I ask myself every single day, and I know I wish I had the answer. I know people always usually tell me that I know he’s proud of you, and I kind of want to hear it from his mouth and I think it would be really cool. But for me like I always say, man, it’s bigger than basketball, and every night that I go out there, I have a bigger purpose, and I play for something bigger than just basketball. And I think that’s what make it’s special that every night I’m out there, no matter the result, no matter how many points I score, I’m playing for something bigger than myself.”
—Pascal Siakam on his father who died in a car crash in 2014.
Reaction: Siakam is a delightful person and maybe we can stop asking him about this at every availability.
The List
Consumable NBA thoughts
The fun thing about having 48 hours between games is we can overanalyze Game 1 to death. All observations will be rendered null and considered ancient history by the close of business in Game 2.
The Siakam Game
Pascal Siakam was undeniably awesome in Game 1, going for 32 points on 14-for-17 shooting, which doesn’t seem remotely possible. Siakam got his points the way he usually does, in transition and within half-court chaos situations. Having gone up against Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo previously, Siakam was clearly enthused about not having to get to the basket against those giants. Draymond Green is pretty damn good too and it will be interesting to see if Siakam gets the full Draymond in Game 2.
The make/miss factor
The oldest cliche in the book is also the one with the most truth. Also the most variance. It truly is a make/miss league and when Marc Gasol is firing away from above the break and Danny Green is throwing in jumpers that went clang in the previous series, the Raptors are basically unbeatable. There’s a balance between wanting those guys to shoot and allowing them to get completely comfortable in their spots. The Warriors need to tighten up their rotations while they continue to give Kawhi Leonard their full attention. That’s what having to deal with a superstar does to your defense: it forces you to make tough choices.
Transition and pace are everything
This was the thing that most annoyed Steve Kerr. It wasn’t just the 24 fast break points the Warriors surrendered, but the 17 turnovers that gave Toronto a clear runway to attack the basket on the run. Clean those two things up and the Warriors feel like they’re in fine position to steal Game 2. The other side of that equation is when the Raps are scoring like that they also choke off Golden State’s transition game. Nick Nurse noted before the game that executing his team’s offense is critical for that very reason. It’s not just about scoring points; it’s about making it hard for the other team to answer. The Raps controlled the pace, and the outcome, in the opener.
Second chance points
Here’s a weird one that ended up not mattering because of the Raptors win, but the Warriors scored 20 points on just nine offensive rebounds. Those long rebounds are a killer because they usually lead to wide open 3-pointers while the defense scrambles to get back into position. Neither team is known for their prowess on the offensive glass, but it’s so hard to get easy looks against this Raptor defense that this may be a pivotal factor.
That said, the Warriors were actually pretty good offensively
Golden State scored 109 points with a True Shooting Percentage of .595. They also assisted on 29 of their 34 makes, which is a pretty optimal performance on the road minus the turnovers. They also got timely scoring contributions from a number of sources, which alleviated some of the pressure on Steph Curry and Klay Thompson to carry the offense. To put it another way: it’s not just championship bravado for them to feel good about themselves down 1-0.
