NBA Finals preview – Toronto Raptors v Golden State Warriors
The Raptors get home court advantage in their NBA Finals matchup against the Golden State Warriors, which tips off on Friday (AEST). And the trump card of getting the first two games at home could really help Nick Nurse’s team.
Not many predicted that Toronto would get past the Bucks and advance to the decider for the first time in the franchise’s history, and it only took them six games to do it. Kawhi Leonard was nothing short of sensational in the East Finals, tallying 27 points, 17 rebounds, six assists, two steals and two blocks in a series-clinching game six performance.
The Claw is playing some of the best basketball of his career and is just as destructive on the defensive end than what he is offensively. Finding a suitable matchup for the star forward will be tricky, especially with Kevin Durant (calf) indefinitely sidelined. Andre Iguodala figures to get first crack, but you can’t ‘shut down’ what Leonard does on defence.
Pascal Siakam will also undoubtably be a handful for the Warriors, who seems to get better with every passing game. The 25-year old has become the Raptors’ legitimate number two scoring option, on a team that includes Kyle Lowry and Marc Gasol. Like Leonard, Siakam is a proficient on both ends of the floor and is constantly active.
If the Raptors’ star forward duo are firing on both ends, and the likes of Danny Green, Fred VanVleet and Norman Powell are making shots, this team is a real handful.
The health of DeMarcus Cousins and Durant could go a long way in determining the winner of the series and both look set to miss at least the first couple of games.
However, the Warriors have played arguably their best basketball all season after the pair went down. Particularly without Durant, Golden State seemed to really lock in on both ends of the floor and are moving the ball magnificently on offence.
Additionally, Steph Curry has really stepped his game up, averaging 36.5 points, 6.5 triples and 7.2 assists in his team’s West Finals series sweep against the Blazers.
This team reminds you of the Golden State of 2015 with Andrew Bogut back in the fold and this might be the best version of Draymond Green that we’ve ever seen.
Not normally renowned for his offence, Green was terrific on both ends of the floor against Portland and his leadership cannot be quantified. Stemming from Green, there is an inner belief that these Warriors possess that comes from winning championships. They know that they can beat anyone no matter who is on the court and that could be their single greatest attribute.
Should the role players like Shaun Livingston, Quinn Cook and Kevon Looney continue to produce, this team could be marching on to their third-straight title.
In their two regular season meetings that took place over a two-week span between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the Raptors took both games.
Prediction: Golden State to win game one @ $2.00, win series in six games.
