‘Big Three’ ng Warriors papagitna sa NBA finals

SA MULING pagkakabuo ng tatluhan nina Stephen Curry, Draymond Green at Klay Thompson ay mahirap talunin ngayon ang Golden State Warriors sa NBA Finals.

Naghari noong 2015, 2017 at 2018, hangad ng Warriors na muling makamit ang NBA championship sa pagsagupa sa Boston Celtics simula sa Game One bukas (Manila time) sa San Francisco venue.

“The pieces fit, first and foremost, and our core and how we play and what we do, what makes us unique and different,” sabi ni Curry, ang two-time NBA Most Valuable Player.

Ngayon lamang ulit nag­laro si Thompson matapos magkaroon ng torn left knee ligament sa Game Six ng 2019 NBA Finals.

Matapos naman ang 17 buwan ay napunit ang kanyang right Achilles tendon.

Tumapos ang Golden State na may league worst 15-50 record noong 2020 season bago ußnti-unting nakabawi sa sumunod na dalawang taon.

“We were still able to keep that same culture in the locker room, even though we were losing. We still played our style of basketball, still holding guys to a high level and a high standard.” ani veteran center Kevon Looney.

Nagdagdag ng pu­wersa ang Warriors, sinibak si Luka Doncic at ang Dallas Mavericks sa Western Conference finals, sa katauhan nina Jordan Poole, Andrew Wiggins at Jonathan Kuminga.

Sina Poole, Wiggins at Kuminga ang inaasahang dedepensa kina Jayson Tatum at Jaylen Brown ng Celtics sa kabuuan ng NBA Finals.