Golden State were totally fine without Stephen Curry
Game 1 showed that they’re still, you know, probably the best team in the NBA
Amidst all the excitement of Houston’s historically nuclear offence, the Philadelphia 76’s showing that there’s possibly a new power in the Eastern Conference, the Greek epic that is the Cavs-Pacers first round series as Lebron carries a husk of a team to a game 7, and Utah detonating whatever the OK3 was, it seems like the defending champions have been under the radar so far this playoff series. The price that is the level of dominance they’ve soaked up over the last four seasons. The overriding feeling that people had as the Warriors dispatched a suddenly drama adjacent San Antonio Spurs team was indifference. The after image of going 7–10 to close out the season still lingering in front of people’s mind.
It’s like people all forgot that they’re the Golden State Warriors. So on Saturday night they decided to do some reminding. Against a New Orleans Pelicans team that swept the Portland Trail Blazers all the way back to irrelevance on the back of stellar play from Jrue Holiday (!)and Anthony Davis, the Warriors went to work. What looked like a mouthwatering matchup that would test the team who was still without star point guard and bender of space and time, Steph Curry, turned out to be an absolute drubbing. It was over before half time. The Warriors ran away 123–101. I imagine this being the collective reaction of the entire team. Like, what else did you expect?
With Queen Bey and Jay-Z sitting courtside with all the grace of a couple who realised they forgot to pay the parking meter (I know, it’s weird), the Warriors put the rest of the league on notice. Everyone seemed to shift into that next gear, or flipped the switch, or ate some PopEye spinach, whatever the trending term is for that playoff mentality ignition. Draymond Green was everywhere, talling 16 points, 15 boards and 11 assists. Kevin Durant went for 26 as well as grabbing 13 rebounds, while I got distracted momentarily and turned back to see that Klay Thompson went off for 27. There was a distinct swagger and energy to the game, the dominance pervaded every inch of Oracle Arena. The Warriors bench were having more fun than perhaps anyone else in the Bay Area.
Everything that worked for NOLA in the Portland series went in the opposite direction. Evaporating into thin air. Holiday struggled on both ends, Davis was forced onto one on one’s against opponents that were much better suited to corralling him, and, well, as good as Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum are, the Trail Blazers have nowhere near the flexibility and cohesiveness that the Warriors have. More than this being a test for the Warriors, this has now become one for the Pelicans. The script has been flipped.
Of course the caveat here is that it’s only game one. This Pelicans team certainly has the potential to put up more of a fight in game two, especially with a talent like Davis roaming the court. This series could go in any number of directions before the dust settles. To deem it over would be a vast misread (unless the Warriors do end up sweeping the series), but even though it may have taken a round a bit to eventuate, we finally have playoff level Warriors.
And the scariest part? Curry wasn’t even out there. If he comes back for game two, which is looking likely, then this series could really be in the books before the week is out.
