But after being outscored by 140 points with Curry out of the lineup through 82 games, Golden State has done just fine in the playoffs.
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“He was awesome”, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said of Thompson’s sparkling effort on both ends of the court.
The pressure was on the Warriors to start the series with a win with Stephen Curry sitting out with a knee sprain, so they will be absolutely delighted with their 118-106 win over the Trailblazers in Game 1 on Sunday.
“I know everybody wants to know is it going to be Saturday, is it going to be Monday?” In six playoff games, opponents are 78 of 143 from 3-point range (27.7 percent).
Draymond Green notched a triple-double for the third time against the Trail Blazers this season, collecting 23 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists.
It used to be – and sometimes still is – said that you don’t have to watch an National Basketball Association game until the final two minutes because that’s when it’s invariably decided. “It was a little bit of everything”. “That’s what won us the game”. And Livingston once again let us know that everything’s gonna be alright. “Got to make sure I’m pacing better and making him curl”.
Steph Curry is one of the most prominent players on Golden States roster this season.
I am praying that the coaches sit Curry for the rest of the series. We wanted to get him back. “Our guys have an understanding of how we have to play without Steph”.
He had 22 points by halftime, staking the Warriors to a comfortable 65-51 advantage.
The performance left Bogut wondering if he was the league’s best all-around player and Kerr saying he was “100 percent” a top-10 player. “It’s the playoffs, you have to be aggressive”.
Where: ORACLE Arena, Oakland, Calif.
“We have to continue to improve”, he said. Lillard put up decent numbers in game one, but he was also incredibly inefficient. “We have to understand they’re an elite team and they showed that tonight”.
“You’ve got to really have a presence and make them do things that they aren’t great at”. The teams resume their best-of-seven series Tuesday night in Oakland.
The Heat next face the victor of Sunday’s game seven between the Toronto Raptors and Indiana Pacers.
Cavaliers 104, Hawks 93: LeBron James scored 25 points, Kyrie Irving added 21 and the Cleveland Cavaliers withstood a strong comeback by Atlanta to maintain their chokehold on the Hawks with a 104-93 victory on Monday night in the opening game of their second-round Eastern Conference series. Combined, the duo shot 13 for 43 from the field.
In Toronto, DeMar DeRozan broke out of his play-off slump in a big way, scoring 30 points as the Raptors held off the Indian Pacers 89-84. They have a style of play. Portland’s defense has already proven to be fairly weak, especially against the Warriors, so the focus for Golden State will be the same as always, get open looks for the team’s shooters and the points will come.
“It just depends how his week goes”, Kerr said.
“That’s just jealousy”, Warriors center Andrew Bogut said of the criticism.
The Heat were simply dominant in a 106-73 rout of the Charlotte Hornets last time out to erase a 3-2 series deficit and claim a first-round victory in seven games. The Warriors had four days off before Game 1 and the Blazers had 36 hours off.
Until he plays the Warriors. “I was proud of the way we competed”. Golden State has been a very capable team and that has continued in the postseason.
Trail Blazers at Warriors, Golden State leads 1-0.
The Kings fired Karl on April 14. “Some of that was my stupidity when I said that no player is untradable”.
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Meanwhile, the Blazers didn’t get enough out of their star backcourt.
