NBA veteran Draymond Green did not look shaken following the Golden State Warriors‘ frustrating loss in Game 6. Instead, in his typical fashion, Green moved with confidence as he looked ahead to Sunday’s series-deciding showdown.
“No, I’m not surprised one bit. Fred VanVleet is the reason we lost to Toronto in the [2019 NBA] Finals,” Green said in a chat with the media. “So, we know what he’s capable of. I’m not surprised at all. It’s exciting. It’s for all the marbles. We’ll move on and learn from what we did wrong. It’s obvious what we did wrong. I think Game 7s are fun.”
The Warriors have experienced tremendous heights since the start of the Stephen Curry era, winning four championships over the past 10 years. They’ve also experienced some failures, including not making the playoffs several times and losing a 3-1 lead to the Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals.
This time, the Warriors are in danger of hitting another major low by ending their hopeful season by blowing another 3-1 series lead. Golden State had a 3-1 lead over the Houston Rockets on Monday, after beating them at the Chase Center in Game 4. They had full control of the series before suffering back-to-back losses that forced a Game 7. In Friday’s loss at home, the Warriors suffered at the hands of Fred VanVleet, who went off for a game-high 29 points on 53.8% shooting.
VanVleet’s performance was reminiscent of the 2019 Finals, when he helped lead the Raptors to their first championship in franchise history. VanVleet averaged 17.0 points, 5.0 assists, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game on 40% shooting. This year, he’s become a problem once again for the Warriors, and Game 6 was his best of the series.
It was a total defensive collapse for the Warriors, and one that ultimately cost them the game. Warriors fans were in panic mode after the loss, and Steph’s son, Canon, was brought to tears as he watched it all unfold from the sidelines. It was an emotional scene after Game 6, but there’s nowhere else to look but forward now with one more chance to win the series.
Coming out on top in a Game 7 on the road will be tough for the Warriors, especially considering the Rockets carry all the momentum in this series. As the second seed in the West, the Rockets have been on point all season, and they’ve found something against the Warriors that has worked for two straight games.
For Draymond, it’s a good sign that he knows what the Warriors are doing wrong, and now it’s just a matter of solving the issue before Sunday’s Game 7. In hostile territory, the pressure will be on the Warriors to win this game, and they’ll need a solid defensive game plan to do it.
If they can contain Fred VanVleet and Amen Thompson in the final game, it will be the ticket to winning the series and advancing to the second round for a matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Of course, they’ll also need solid contributions from their key players.
With the arrival of Jimmy Butler in February, the Warriors ascended to elite status in the West, but it’s the play of Stephen Curry that will make or break their season. With averages of 24.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 6.0 assists per game on 44.8% shooting, Steph was playing up to his usual standards this season, but he may need to step up to another level to avoid elimination this weekend.
