Golden State Warriors await next challenge after 8-0 postseason start

OAKLAND, Calif. (Diya TV) — The Golden State Warriors now sit just four wins away from the team’s third-straight trip to the NBA Finals — and very likely, a third consecutive meeting with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the league’s championship series.

From the outside looking in, it’s not hard to see why — the club possesses four All-Stars, including two MVPs.

Golden State eliminated the Utah Jazz on Monday night in a 4-0 series sweep, and are 8-0 in the postseason for the first time in franchise history. Coincidentally, the Cavaliers have also swept through their first two playoff series’ during this tournament.

But for the Warriors, the games mostly haven’t been very tight contests. Only the team’s Game 3 victory in the first round against the Portland Trail Blazers was decided by fewer than 11 points. And the Warriors not for one second in three of four games against the Jazz trailed in terms of scoring. The club’s trio of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Kevin Durant have asserted their dominance, and the team’s defense on the court has been, in a word, stifling.

“We are mostly impressed with how we are playing our brand of basketball,” Green said. “We really imposed our will on the other team. That’s big. In the playoffs, you let a team get in a groove and it’s hard to win games like that.

“We have imposed our will all eight games. That’s important on the offensive and defensive end, and if you can do that, with the talent that we have, with the experience that we have, it will be tough to beat us.”

The Warriors await the winner between the series featuring a pair of Texas rivals, the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets.

Golden State are averaging a playoff-high 115.3 points per game, ahead of the Cavaliers’ 114.5. The Warriors are conceding just 98.8 points in the postseason to lead all teams still alive and has a playoff-best 96.9 defensive rating.

Golden State’s offensive output has been delivered in spurts — one minute, Curry, in his vintage form, leads the way; the next, Durant or Green take a commanding control of the court. Klay Thompson has been in a bit of a slump, but still scored 21 points in the 121-95 victory Monday night.

The Warriors have been without a familiar face on the bench since very early on in this playoff tournament — head coach Steve Kerr hasn’t appeared on the sidelines since Game 2 of the Portland series. He remains out after having a spinal cord leak procedure at Duke University on Friday, and there is no timetable for his return. He and interim head coach Mike Brown speak regularly, but that’s an obstacle to overcome.

Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder had nothing but glowing remarks to share about the sort of culture Kerr has created in the Golden State locker room.

“They demonstrate it in everything that they do,” Snyder said. “When a team kind of lives who they are, that is a unique group. They all believe in each other and they are willing to sacrifice for one another.

“Just the unselfishness that that group plays with and the care they have for one another on the court. They’ve got each other’s backs.”

The competition will get tougher, though. And there is, of course, LeBron James waiting to defend his crown in the NBA Finals.