Thunder Didn’t Give Away a Trip to the NBA Finals; Golden State Warriors Took It

The Golden State Warriors met the Oklahoma City Thunder’s superior execution, strategy and all-around edge in earthly play with what felt like acts of God on Monday, securing a 96-88 win in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals.

Score one for divine intervention.

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Golden State completed its improbable emergence from a 3-1 series hole (becoming just the 10th of 233 teams to pull off the feat), erasing yet another double-digit deficit with absurd shooting, ridiculous resolve and relentless confidence.

The victory swells Golden State’s already enormous legend. It was the Warriors’ 17th win after trailing by double figures, and it came against a Thunder team that easily erased the squad many thought would trouble the Warriors most: the 67-win San Antonio Spurs.

To beat the Thunder in Monday’s decisive contest, Golden State needed 36 points and a series of truly unstoppable offensive sequences from unanimous MVP Stephen Curry.

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Curry was truly transcendent…and it has generally required transcendence to beat the Thunder.

In Game 6, the Warriors survived by the scorching-hot hand of Klay Thompson, who pumped in 41 points, setting an NBA record for made three-pointers in a postseason game.

There is no other team with two game-altering fireballers like Curry and Thompson. There never has been. Probably, there never will be.

If not for the truly unique shot-making of those two players—against dialed-in schemes, dogged coverage and incomparable Thunder length—Oklahoma City would be headed for the Finals.

It follows that this is where the “OKC choked” narratives must die.

The Thunder were better than the Warriors in virtually every facet of this series. Yes, OKC’s three-point shooting went cold in Games 6 and 7; it missed 13 straight triples in one span, a cold streak that lasted more than two quarters.

But their effort …

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