How important is home court?
Warriors played for health instead of the No. 1 seed, so Game 7 is in Houston
HOUSTON >> Back when the Warriors labored through overlapping injuries and surprising losses, the Houston Rockets kept winning with a healthy roster.
So after considering winning homecourt advantage as “probably the number-one priority” in January, Warriors coach Steve Kerr changed his sentiments in March.
“I haven’t given it any thought,” Kerr said about finishing with the No. 1 seed. “If somebody needs some rest or is banged up, I’ll sit them.”
The Warriors will soon find out if they prioritized things correctly. The Warriors will face the Rockets in a series-deciding Game 7 of the Western Conference finals tonight in Houston. And after spending last summer acquiring Chris Paul, P.J. Tucker and Luc Mbah a Moute in hopes to knock off the defending champions, the Rockets will also have the home-crowd support.
“It’s something we’ve worked all year to get,” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said on Sunday in a conference call. “Hopefully we can take advantage of it.”
History favors the Rockets’ chances. The NBA has seen 112 Game 7 playoff games, and the road opponent has won only 25 times. One of those exceptions included the Cleveland Cavaliers winning Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals against the Warriors at Oracle Arena. As Kerr noted, “last time we were home in Game 7, the home team didn’t win unfortunately.”
Kerr hardly sounded as remorseful about the Warriors finishing with a
58-24 record for the No. 2 seed and seven games behind the Rockets (65-17).
“It definitely crossed my mind. But it didn’t impair my thinking in terms of how we needed to approach the season,” Kerr said. “We had a lot of injuries. We had some sort of four-year fatigue going to the Finals. This played out as it’s supposed to.”
Well, almost.
Kerr considered it “doubtful” that veteran forward Andre Iguodala will play in Game 7 after missing the previous three playoff games with a lateral leg contusion. Even if the Warriors lack wing depth, Kerr does not plan to play second-year guard Patrick McCaw despite being listed as probable after recovering from a spine injury. McCaw played four minutes of mop-up duty in Game 6, his first appearance since nursing the injury in Sacramento on March 31. Kerr insisted third-year forward Kevon Looney will play, though, despite being listed as questionable with a sore left toe. As for Iguodala, Kerr said that he still feels pain when he runs.
“He’s doing everything he can to get out on the floor,” Kerr said. “He’s getting treatment several times a day. He’s doing all the right things. It just hasn’t responded yet. Hopefully that’s over soon.”
D’Antoni sounded just as
uncertain about Paul, who is listed as questionable after missing Game 6 with a strained right hamstring.
“I don’t think he’s tested it at all,” D’Antoni said. “He’s just getting treatment to make sure it calms down and everything.”
Paul will complete a pre-game warmup before the Rockets determine his availability. What does Paul need to show D’Antoni?
“I don’t have to see anything. If I get the nod from the trainers and Chris and the doctors, then he’ll be ready to go,” D’Antoni said. “If probably any of those three disagree, he’s probably not going.”
The Warriors have not worried about the health of their All-Star players partly because they prioritized that over chasing the Rockets in the standings.
While Stephen Curry missed the last 10 regularseason games with a Grade 2 MCL sprain his left knee, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green all had overlapping absences because of minor ailments. Curry then returned for Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals against New Orleans. In related news, the Warriors went 8-2 through the first two rounds of the NBA playoffs.
That explains why D’Antoni downplayed home-court advantage before the Western Conference finals started. He was proven right in the Warriors’ Game 1 win in Houston. But after stealing a road win in Game
4 and forcing a Game 7, D’Antoni changed his opinion. D’Antoni explained the change this way: “that’s calling spinning.”
“The reason we said it didn’t matter is we know each team is capable of winning on the road. In a sense, it matters less,” D’Antoni said. “If we knew one team couldn’t win on the road, obviously, then it’s a big deal. But because of that, the percentages go way down. Now we do have home-court. There is a favorability of that. It might not be as high as people want because we’re playing against the best team in the league. But there is a little bit of an advantage.” How so?
“When you get on the roll, you can hear the crowd,” D’Antoni said. “You can feel the energy. You can do all that. I think also that players might not have a big role all the time might feel more comfortable at home. They can play a little bit better.”
The Warriors have equal home and loss records (2912). The Warriors have gone 4-1 in playoff elimination games since 2015.
“Same advantage and same disadvantage as any other game, to be honest with you,” Kerr said. “But we know we have a veteran team. We know we have guys who have been through almost everything. We have a lot of confidence.”
The Warriors’ confidence grew following their Game 6 win over Houston. Then, Curry and Thompson became efficient again (a combined 25-of-46 from the field). They forced 21 turnovers. They overcame a 17-point deficit. They held the Rockets to 25 secondhalf points. They saw Houston’s vulnerabilities without Paul.
Yet, the Warriors are mindful their own turnovers contributed to losses in Games 2 (15), 4 (16) and 5 (16). The Warriors also stressed the need to have stronger late-game execution than in their losses in Games 4 and 5. And they will have to do that before a hostile Rockets crowd.
Then, the Warriors will find out if their regular-season concession will yield postseason regret.
“Houston has had a phenomenal season. They targeted that home- court advantage, got it and deserved it,” Kerr said. “Here we are and let’s go.”