After being down double-digits in the first half of Game 2 of the 2019 NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors showcased their championship mentality and secured a 109-104 victory. Here are three keys for a pivotal Game 3 at home.
Sometimes, basketball is not fair.
For the majority of Game 2 of the 2019 NBA Finals, the Toronto Raptors were the better team on the floor.
Too bad they were playing the best third quarter team in NBA history.
The Golden State Warriors, fueled by an 18-0 run to start the second half, stormed back from a double-digit deficit to build an advantage Toronto couldn’t make up, ultimately tying up the series at one game apiece.
It was a story that we’re all too familiar with. Just ask defensive ace Draymond Green:
Warriors' Draymond Green on Finals Game 2 comeback vs. Raptors: "We should have been down by a lot more than five points [at halftime]. We know we can cover that in 10 seconds."
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) June 3, 2019
The Warriors were able to weather the injury bug, as their sharpshooter and Game 2 leading scorer Klay Thompson (25 points) went down with what is being called hamstring tightness. Key rotational big man Kevin Looney suffered a left chest contusion as well.
Led by Raptors superstar Kawhi Leonard (34 points, 14 rebounds), the home team was able to cut the lead to two points, before 2015 NBA Finals MVP Andre Iguodala hit a dagger 3 to put the defending champs up five with 5.9 seconds to go.
How’s that for a statement?
With a battered and bruised Warriors team heading into Game 3, the defending champs certainly have their work cut out for them in what should be a tight, back-and-forth game. Here are three keys for the Dubs as the series shifts back to Oakland.