OAKLAND, Calif. — The fascinating thing about this NBA Finals rematch is that while this year’s is a healthier, stronger version of the Cleveland Cavaliers, it’s also a better Golden State Warriors team than we’ve ever seen before. This team is better than the one that beat the Cavaliers for the championship last year, better than the one that won a record-setting 73rd game in April. The Warriors emerged more confident and resilient than ever after overcoming a 3-1 deficit in the Western Conference finals against an Oklahoma City Thunder team that seemed to be finally maximizing its potential.
Oh, these Warriors are smarter too. Evidence of their increased savviness could be found cradled in the arms of Stephen Curry’s brother, Seth, as he walked through the Oracle Arena hallways not long after the Warriors finished off the Thunder in Game 7. Seth Curry held the game ball, entrusted to him for safekeeping after Stephen Curry secured it and handed it to their father, Dell. This one will stay in the family and perhaps be passed down to Riley one day, unlike the ball from the 2015 NBA Finals.
“He learned his lesson last year,” Seth Curry said. “He threw the ball up in the air, and Andre got it.” Stephen Curry has learned to grab the souvenirs and bask in the moment, as he did when he hit one last rainbow 3-pointer to put the Warriors up by 10 in the final minute of Monday’s game and then stood, staring into the crowd. He’d gone from yelling, “We’re not going home!” at the end of Game 5 to holding seven fingers aloft at the close of Game 6 to simply standing and savoring.
Steph Curry takes fans’ breaths away on a nightly basis, but the reigning MVP has learned to stop and take in the moment himself. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images “You appreciate how tough it is to get back here,” Curry said. “That’s the one thing I’ve learned. You can’t take anything for granted because it’s such a grind, it’s such a battle against a great Thunder team that pushed us to the brink. So you’ve got to be appreciative of this accomplishment. And I look forward to getting four more wins.”
That’s obviously the goal for both sides, though few would put it out there the way Curry did. But that has been his way all season. It was there with the early eagerness to set the record for the best start to a season. It was evident in his nonchalant confidence that the Warriors would retain the No. 1 seed against the drafting San Antonio Spurs, even after the lowest loss of the season to the Los Angeles Lakers put that in doubt.
It was seen in his insistence on playing it out and not taking rest days in the final stages of the pursuit of 73 victories — something he’d better have delivered if it cost him chances to rest for the playoffs. It even manifested in the Western Conference finals, when Curry said the setback in Game 1 would make things more interesting in what he assured would be a long series. He wound up being right, but not before the Thunder threatened to wrap it up early after demolishing the Warriors in Games 3 and 4.
The Warriors have expanded their capabilities. Before, their reference point for adversity was the 2-1 deficit they faced in the second round against the Memphis Grizzlies last year, which they drew upon when they found themselves in the same position against Cleveland. Curry referenced that early in this series against the Thunder, only to find himself in an even deeper hole in these conference finals.