NBA FINAL..

STARTING CENTER Golden State: Jordan Bell (presumably). Toronto: Marc Gasol. Analysis: Gasol has waited a long time for this first taste of the finals, and Bell — if he does actually start, which is in some doubt — has 35 points in 11 games this postseason. And don’t be surprised if DeMarcus Cousins, who has never played in a finals game and missed most of these playoffs with a quad injury, is back on the floor early in the series for the Warriors and back as a starter not long after that. So far in the playoffs, Gasol has made more 3s (28) than 2s (27) and 55% of his points have come from beyond the 3-point line.

Edge: Raptors, largely because of the uncertainty surrounding Cousins’ availability. BENCH

Golden State: Kevon Looney,

Shaun Livingston, Quinn Cook, Andrew Bogut.

Toronto: Fred VanVleet, Norman Powell, Serge Ibaka.

Analysis: The Warriors’ bench rotation will change if Cousins and/or Durant return. Golden State has averaged 24.6 points off the bench in the playoffs, which doesn’t look so hot, but a deeper dive shows how effective certain things have been for the Warriors. Looney has been fantastic, shooting 72% (50 for 69) in 329 minutes off the bench, and Livingston is looking for his fourth ring as a key reserve. Ibaka, assuming he doesn’t start at center, will get big minutes for Toronto and plays the two-man game with Leonard like they’ve been together for seven years instead of seven months. And VanVleet came up big time and time again toward the end of the East finals, his emotions bolstered by the birth of his son midway through that matchup.