Golden State Warriors prefer to play Spurs or Clippers over Thunder

With the first round of the NBA Playoffs approaching, the Golden State Warriors will likely be playing either the San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Clippers or Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Western Conference playoff race is as close as it can be. While the eight teams are pretty much decided, the seeding is wide open. The Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder are all within a half game of each other. One of these teams will land in the 8-Seed and face off against the Golden State Warriors.

Each one of these teams has won 47 games. It goes without saying that either one of these teams would be a tough opponent to face in round one. But, I think everyone can agree that the Warriors would rather play the Clippers or Spurs over the Thunder.

The beef between OKC and Golden State is real. A round-one collision between these two rivals could be explosive. The tension would build in each game and the potential for fights to break out would constantly be in play.

This isn’t even mentioning the sheer amount of talent on the Thunder roster. Former MVP Russell Westbrook has once again averaged a triple-double (his third consecutive season doing so). Meanwhile, Paul George has had an MVP worthy season himself. This is all with Steven Adams holding down the paint in a strong way.

In contrast, the Clippers and Spurs don’t have nearly as much talent on their rosters. The Spurs have a star duo of DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge, but outside of that not much talent. As for the Clippers, they really don’t have anyone capable of single-handedly beating the Dubs.

If any team in the West could push Golden State to their limit in round-one, it would be the Oklahoma City Thunder. I know every member of the Warriors roster is hoping the Thunder can manage to grab a higher seed and avoid this showdown in round one.