Golden State Warriors: 5 Keys To Beating The Thunder
4. Health
Kind of an obvious one, but with Steph Curry (sprained MCL), Draymond Green (ankle) and Andrew Bogut (right adductor strain) all banged up, we should mention that these two teams are not exactly entering the series on equal footing.
The Thunder are coming off a triumphant, us-against-the-world kind of victory over the Spurs, they’re playing great basketball and they’re 100 percent healthy.
The Warriors, conversely, are hoping their MVP can continue averaging something like the 34.5 points, 9.5 assists and 7.0 rebounds per game on .500/.370/1.000 shooting splits he put up in his two games since returning from injury.
They’re also hoping that Bogut can even suit up for Game 1, though the good news is that Green was a participant in practice as early as Friday.
Warriors say center Andrew Bogut (right adductor strain) is questionable for Game 1 of the West Finals tomorrow versus OKC.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) May 16, 2016
With the Dubs at 100 percent, there’s no question who the better team is. But if Russell Westbrook is able to play smart defense on Curry because he’s still recovering and may not be as explosive, that could tip the scales in OKC’s favor, just as missing Bogut against that bruising Thunder frontcourt would do.
During the regular season, Curry averaged 35.0 points per game on .480/450/.833 shooting splits in three meetings with the Thunder. The Warriors need him to do MVP things, they need Green to put that defensive versatility to good use against one of the league’s best offenses and they need Bogut to keep Steven Adams, Enes Kanter and Serge Ibaka off the glass.
For that to happen, the Dubs have got to be healthy first and foremost.
Next: No. 3