The Warriors enter Game 5 with a 3-1 lead over the Pelicans, and a chance to move on to the Conference Finals with a win on Tuesday night.
The Warriors messed around a bit in Game 3 with a starting lineup that didn’t make much sense.
Steve Kerr decided to put the Hamptons Five on the floor as his starting lineup in Game 4, and that resulted in a dominant 26-point victory.
According to statistics gathered by The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, the starters (AKA The Death Lineup) had an offensive rating of 130.1, a defensive rating of 66.5, a net rating of +63.6, and a plus-minus of +26 in 18 minutes together in Game 4.
Those numbers helped Kerr make the easy decision to stick with that starting lineup in Game 5 with an opportunity to close out the Pelicans at home.
This has been a see-saw series, so there is a decent chance that New Orleans brings a much better effort in Game 5.
The Warriors blew out the Pelicans in Game 1, New Orleans was much more competitive in Game 2, and they finally broke through for a win in Game 3. The rhythm of the series suggests that Game 5 will be a tight matchup after an uncompetitive loss in Game 4, but it looks like the Pelicans simply don’t have the firepower to match up with a focused Golden State team.
Houston plays before this game will tip off, and they can clinch a series victory on Tuesday as well.
The Warriors would love to pick up an easy victory over New Orleans in Game 5 and not give the Rockets an advantage of some extra rest before the Western Conference Finals.
Next: Warriors #ThrowbackThursday: Game 3 vs. Pelicans (2015)
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Game Details
Golden State Warriors vs New Orleans Pelicans
Tip-Off: Sunday, May 8, 2018 at 7:30 p.m. PDT
Location: Oracle Arena, Oakland, California
TV: TNT
Radio: 95.7 The Game, Warriors Radio Network