In what was a triumphant night for the franchise, the Golden State Warriors eliminated the Portland Trail Blazers as Stephen Curry was given his second consecutive MVP award
Despite weathering the best ammunition of the Portland Trail Blazers, the Golden State Warriors simply seemed destined to be victorious on in Game 5.
Before tip-off, Stephen Curry received his second-straight NBA MVP trophy on center court of the packed Oracle Arena. Curry was brief on the microphone, thanking his family, teammates and assembled Dub Nation. Curry was officially named MVP on Tuesday where he gave a more poignant acceptance speech in front of the press.
When the game started, The Trail Blazers found themselves leading the game in the first half but couldn’t seem to find the baskets down the stretch, when it mattered most when facing the fierce effort of the Warriors squad.
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Despite Damian Lillard making three free throws to make it 123-121 with 10 seconds to go, the Blazers were unable to overcome the crisp shooting Warriors down the stretch.
For the week without Curry, it seemed as if the Blazers might give Golden State some unexpected trouble. Down 2-1, the Blazers pushed the Warriors to the limit in Game 4 and forced Curry to deliver another historic performance with 17 points in overtime to provide the victory.
The Blazers defied expectations after losing All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge and other members of their starting lineup in the offseason. They found themselves unexpectedly in the playoffs and delivered a first-round upset of the fourth-seeded Clippers. Albeit, the latter was unexpectedly undermanned halfway through the series due to injury.
C.J. McCollum showed throughout the series why he had earned the Most Improved Player of the Year award. Damian Lillard played like the future superstar that he is in delivering big performances all season.
But, the night belonged to the Golden State Warriors.
Curry and Klay Thompson had 29 and 33 points respectively to outscore the Blazers duo.
Lillard finished the night with 28 and McCollum had 27.
The Warriors are now one step closer to continuing a dynastic run at the top of the NBA. They are led by the now two-time MVP in Curry, who this year was the first player to ever win the award unanimously. The team also set the all-time record for victories in the regular season with 73.
The team now awaits the winner of the San Antonio-Oklahoma City series that has become the shootout event of the postseason.
Despite finishing the regular season with the best home record in NBA history, the Spurs have now dropped two at home in the series and face elimination. The Spurs are in the midst of a transition from their Big Three to the new pair of Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard and Game 6 may be the most telling of the mental fortitude of their new young leaders.
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On the other side of the coin, the electric duo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have played outstanding and look to be back in the Conference Finals for the first time since 2014 if they are victorious on Thursday.
Whoever wins between the Spurs and Thunder will have proven they are battle tested, and they will have to be to threaten the formidable defending champions.