Warriors dump Dallas, in finals
San Francisco, May 27: Klay Thompson scored a game-high 32 points and the Golden State Warriors advanced to the NBA Finals for the sixth time in eight seasons by defeating Dallas 120-110 on Thursday.
The Warriors, chasing a fourth title in eight campaigns, won the best-ofseven Western Conference finals 4-1 and secured a place in June’s title showdown against either the Boston Celtics or Miami Heat.
The Celtics have a 3-2 series lead in the Eastern Conference finals.
Golden State won NBA crowns in 2015, 2017 and
2018 by defeating the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers each time but lost the finals in
2016 to the Cavs and in
2019 to Toronto.
“This is a blessing for us to get back here, to get back where we belong,” said Golden State guard Stephen Curry, who was named the Western Conference playoff Most Valuable Player.
Andrew Wiggins scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Warriors while Draymond Green added 17 points and nine assists, Jordan Poole scored 16 points off the bench, Curry added 15 and nine assists, and Kevon Looney added 10 points and 18 rebounds.
The Warriors have not lost a playoff game at home this season, the first post-season run in their new arena in San Francisco after leaving behind their old home in Oakland.
“It’s special to do it in our new building,” Curry said, adding “This isn’t the ultimate goal but we’ve got to celebrate this for all we went through the past three years.”
After missing the playoffs the past two seasons while rebuilding, the Warriors are playing for the trophy again with champion core stars Curry, Thompson and Green back setting the pace. “This one is special because this is a group no one thought would ever be back here,” Green said.
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