How the Dubs won the last Durant-less matchup against Houston

The Golden State Warriors took on the Houston Rockets four times in the regular season and only came out victorious when they were without Kevin Durant.

Coming into this series, it was impossible to predict all that could’ve happened. From the rush of cutting dunks and drilled threes to the silence following Kevin Durant’s injury, Game 5, a five-point victory for the Golden State Warriors, had everything.

However, for Golden State, Game 5 also resulted in them losing their best player for most likely the remainder of the series. Durant was diagnosed with a mild right calf strain, which, given the fact that analysts thought it was an Achilles’ rupture, is good.

Durant, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, is expected to be re-examined next week. If that’s the case, he’ll either be working on rehab from home or preparing for the Western Conference Finals as Game 6 is tonight and Game 7 is Sunday.

That said, the Warriors will have to find a way to win one of the next two games against a highly-skilled Rockets team with their backs against the wall. They certainly have the firepower, but can they find their former identity, the one that didn’t need Durant to win?

The last time the Warriors took on the Rockets without Durant was mid-March. But, there was another superstar that helped arm the Dubs. That was none other than DeMarcus Cousins, who dropped 27 points en route to a mere two-point victory.

Encouraging enough, Curry and Thompson dropped 54 points in that victory. 30 of those were Thompson who could erupt in Game 6 and help propel the Dubs to victory. It’s what they’ll need without Cousins and Durant on the court.

While the Warriors did take on the Rockets without Durant, they can’t rely on Cousins who is out with his own leg injury. There’s no good comparison to what tonight may like. Even the 2015 series between these two teams didn’t feature near enough key players to draw any conclusions.

What we do know is that Stephen Curry finally caught fire in Game 5. He scored 12 points in the final quarter and knocked down a few threes. Through him alone, the Warriors can take down the Rockets, but they’ll need the two-time MVP, not the player that’s shown up the last few games.

The Warriors need Curry and Thompson to play to their full potential in Game 6. If not, they’ll be starring a potentially eliminating Game 7 in the face without one of their former MVPs.