Golden State Warriors paying close attention to today’s Game 7’s
By Tony Pesta
It’s a beautiful day to be an NBA fan as two explosive Game 7’s are slated for our pleasure. For the Golden State Warriors, however, the outcome of these games could have massive ramifications for their championship aspirations.
With a loaded NBA schedule with two highly impactful Game 7’s taking place, who should the Golden State Warriors root for today?
We’ll start with the obvious one. The Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns face off in a Game 7 to see who will compete against the Dubs in the Western Conference Finals.
Golden State likely would prefer to play Dallas. While Luka Doncic is special, the Warriors are no strangers to game planning for a single, individual superstar. They won’t stop Luka but they will place an enormous amount of pressure on the “others” for Dallas to win.
So far, the Mavs’ supporting cast has been stepping up in a big way, making them one of the NBA’s Cinderella teams. But, the Cinderella story has to end eventually and the Warriors would be happy to bet on themselves in this case.
Facing Phoenix would not be the worst thing in the world. After all, the Dubs have a clean track record against Chris Paul-led teams. However, they’ve never had to contain the likes of Devin Booker and Mikal Bridges complimenting Paul’s skillset — and checking Deandre Ayton will make this potential series a headache for everyone in Golden State.
Okay, what about Milwaukee and Boston? The first Game 7 of the day might not impact the Warriors at all if the Miami Heat manage to represent the Eastern Conference, anyways. Yet, the Dubs should probably root for Boston.
It’s simple, really. Do the Warriors think they have the personnel to stop a rampaging Giannis Anteteokounmpo? Probably not. Avoiding the defending champs should beat the top of Golden State’s wish list.
Sadly, facing Boston would not be much easier. The Celtics’ defense already stunned the likes of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. If they can close out a series over Milwaukee it would pose a sturdy challenge for the Warriors to overcome in the NBA Finals.