Photo via: @sergeibaka Twitter.
June 23, 2019 — I’m sure you’re all aware that the Warriors lost in Game six at Oracle Arena on Thursday June 13, making the Raptors the 2019 NBA Champs for their first time in history.
It’s been rough for me to write about this game, not due to the loss, but more so the injuries that will carry out for the Warriors until at least the 2020 season. Aka why my post is so late.
The Raptors played their best basketball from Game one to the final Game six; they hit every shot, played aggressive on defense and benefited off turnovers.
Klay Thompson had a 30 point game against the Raptors on Thursday night, but as he went up for a layup, he was unaware of Danny Green behind him. Thompson fell terribly on his knee buckled, and it has now been confirmed that he tore his left knee ACL. Game six Klay showed up. The Warriors were able to keep up, but as the clock winded down Steph Curry shot a tough three from the arc that didn’t go and the Raptors won 114-110. Curry usually hits those shots in crucial moments, especially in Oracle, but he was having a tough night shooting, 3-11 on 3PT (21 points, seven assists.) Curry was double-teamed the entire night but created great plays under the basket and around the perimeter for others to put a score on the board.
The Toronto Raptors had the best record in the series 58-24, but it didn’t seem that way during the post season. They played the Orlando Magic in round one, 76ers in round two and the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals. During the last two series’ (sorry to any Magic fans) the Raptors were continuously ranked as the underdog. Two losses to start the series against the Bucks and analysts were saying it was a wrap for the Raptors and Giannis was going to defeat the Warriors in the NBA Finals.
The series was electric; the Raptors controlled each possession and really handled the game. Game one Dubs fans were continuously saying ‘they won’t have another shooting night like that,’ ‘it’s game one we will come back and readjust.’ Every time the Warriors were anywhere near catching up the Raptors fought back and fought hard.
So heartbreaking KD was injured trying to get the team another win when they were down 3-1. Durant will always hold the snipper title as long has he’s on the court, but since his injury Leonard had slowly taken that name from him (don’t come after me fam, obviously I’m a KD rider for life.) As soon as Leonard could feel a team decreasing the lead or hitting hot shots, he was right there with back to back three points or a steal on defense.
Now that the offseason has started hot, with an Anthony Davis trade to LA for the entire rookie lineup, we can only expect the NBA to stay unpredictable. I just hope the KD and Klay rumors die out and they sign back with the Warriors š
Congrats to Toronto and the Raptors for winning! Onto the NBA Awards.
thesportsnote 