NBA Playoffs on Sling TV: Western Conference Finals
The Warriors swept the Rockets 4-0 in the regular season but both Golden State and Houston recognize that the postseason is a different animal.
“It seems like in the playoffs, things kind of take a different shape,” said MVP Stephen Curry, who will lead the Warriors against MVP runner-up James Harden and the Rockets tonight at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.
Harden agrees: “Yesterday is over with. We play … against the Golden State Warriors. That’s a really good team. We have to turn the page. We have to be ready to go … We’ll be ready.”
Harden’s quote is a great example of a change from the regular season. In mid-January he said of the Warriors: “They ain’t even that good.”
He may have come to regret those words because Golden State promptly beat the Rockets, 126-113, after the video surfaced.
And in case there’s any doubt, here’s how good the Warriors really are: they ranked 2nd in the league in offensive rating and first in defensive rating. The net rating? Best in the league. The Rockets rank 12th, 6th and 6th, respectively.
Since the series features the top two MVP vote getters this year, it would be easy to let too much of the focus go to them. Make no mistake: whoever wins this series will do so because of a team effort, not the highlight reel of a one-man show.
“We don’t get to this (point) if not for Trev, Brew, Josh, Dwight, and Jet,” Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. “We don’t even get to today. … Everybody that stepped on the floor really contributed.”
For the Warriors, they’ll need everything they can get from the bench, too—and the bench is deep. But what’s even more important than the depth of the bench is the way all the pieces fit together.
“The beauty of basketball is that it takes time for guys to grow together,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “You can’t just throw pieces together like an all-star team and expect it to work. You need continuity and leadership to become great.”
Here’s the upcoming TV schedule for the finals:
Tuesday, May 19
Houston Rockets at Golden State Warriors, 9pm ET (ESPN)
Game 1
Wednesday, May 20
Cleveland Cavaliers at Atlanta Hawks, 8:30pm ET (TNT)
Game 1
Thursday, May 21
Houston Rockets at Golden State Warriors, 9pm ET (ESPN)
Game 2
Friday, May 22
Cleveland Cavaliers at Atlanta Hawks, 8:30pm ET (TNT)
Game 2
Saturday, May 23
Golden State Warriors at Houston Rockets, 9pm ET (ESPN)
Game 3
Sunday, May 24
Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers, 8:30pm ET (TNT)
Game 3
Monday, May 25
Golden State Warriors at Houston Rockets, 9pm ET (ESPN)
Game 4
Tuesday, May 26
Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers, 8:30pm ET (TNT)
Game 4