OKLAHOMA CITY — The Western Conference Finals didn’t end with Game 6, but it sure felt like it.
Everywhere you looked, from the locker rooms to the court and the hallways in between where the Golden State Warriors pulled off a stunning 108-101 win Saturday against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena, there was euphoria from the defending champions and absolute shock from the team that let them come back from the dead.
The Thunder knew, just like everyone else who was in the building for one of the greatest playoff games in NBA history, that they were on the wrong end of a special moment. And while there’s one more game on tap in this sensational series – Game 7 at Oracle Arena on Monday night – Game 6 was epic enough to hit the rewind button just one last time in order to fully appreciate what unfolded.
From Klay Thompson’s night (playoff record 11 three pointers) to Steph Curry’s awakening (20 of his 31 points in the second half) to the brilliant move by the Warriors coaching staff to start Andre Iguodala in the second half, the Warriors made all the right moves in a way that even they could barely believe. And from coach Steve Kerr on down, no one was afraid to admit that – no matter what happens next – this was a game they would never forget.
Kerr, who won five titles with Michael Jordan’s Bulls and Tim Duncan’s San Antonio Spurs and played in 128 playoff games, gave his take on where this game ranked in his basketball life and the emotional roller coaster of the game itself
“I was involved in a few (playoff games) with the Bulls that were special, but this was right up there no doubt,” he said. “I’m not emotional, actually, during games. I’m really not. I don’t get real emotional during the games. I’m just trying to figure out what’s next. As a staff, we’re always conversing, and trying to figure out what we’ve got to do, what we’ve got to get ready for. And so you just kind of get lost in the game itself, and then when you finally get a chance to kind of sit back, you kind of say, ‘Wow, that was really something.’
“I knew we would fight (in this series). I knew things would change after Game 4 (when the Thunder led 3-1), because we have a championship team. We have competitive guys. We were embarrassed. So I knew the fight would come back, and I think we needed to feel that confidence from Game 5. So I thought that was really key, getting that win, coming back here, and then kind of refocusing on ‘We can do so much better. Here’s what we have to do,’ and go from there.”
Luke Walton, the Warriors lead assistant coach and Los Angeles Lakers head coach in waiting who won two titles with the Lakers as a player, agreed.
“Listen, it doesn’t get any better than that,” he said. “For how well that other team played, how good they are, the environment of this game, being an elimination game, these guys having not played well on the road before (in Game 3 and Game 4 blowouts in Oklahoma City), whatever the scale pops out at that’s where this game is, Finals (game) or not.”
Ron Adams, the Warriors assistant coach and defensive guru who surely enjoyed the fourth quarter (the Thunder shot 5 of 19 and scored just 18 points), was impressed because of how the Warriors were able to come back on the road for the win. Adams has coached in the NBA for 20 seasons, spending time with six teams.
“That’s as good a road win as I’ve been involved in, because of the circumstance,” Adams said. “This is the toughest series we’ve had in the playoffs in two years. They’re a great team.”
Dell Curry, Steph’s father who played in the NBA for 16 seasons (51 playoff games), knows how hard this kind of win is to get.
“Yeah, I’ve been around the league a long time, and it’s right up there (near) the top,” he said. “Down 3-1 on the road, in this type of environment, in two of the loudest buildings I’ve ever been in (Oracle Arena in Game 5 and Chesapeake Arena in Game 6), you’re down the whole game, and then find a way. But they were confident. Steph knew they had to play well, and when champions know they need to play well, they seem to find a way to do it.
“Guys stepped up. Klay was huge obviously. And Iguodala. Andre played a tremendous game. That was a great move starting him in the second half, and he was amazing. He made (Kevin) Durant take tough shots. But yeah, this is the type of game that can really catapult you to something special.”
The Warriors, who are trying to become the 10th of 233 teams to win a seven-game playoff series after trailing 3-1, know this isn’t over. That much was clear late Saturday night, when forward Draymond Green made his way out of the arena and his mind surely pondered the Monday night madness to come.
Green had done his part, turning in a 12-points, 12-rebound, six-assist, three-steal performance that was just what the Warriors needed. And as he headed for the exits, he stopped to watch a few moments of the Durant-Russell Westbrook press conference that was still taking place before moving up this mountain they’re all climbing.
These stars will align again, all right. One last time, with everything on the line.
Follow Sam Amick on Twitter @Sam_Amick
