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| | Trent Murphy Jersey Elite (28th Aug 18 at 7:58am UTC) | | By Golden State standards Authentic Joaquin Benoit Jersey , this season was downright bumpy.
The Warriors won only 58 regular-season games, by far their fewest in this four-year run of excellence. They went 7-10 in their final 17 games of the regular season. Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala all got hurt. They needed to win a Game 7 on the road to reach the NBA Finals, and they could have easily lost two of the first three games of this series.
Yet here they are.
Golden State is on the cusp of another NBA championship, holding a 3-0 series lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers going into Game 4 of the finals. The Warriors could be champions again as early as Friday night, and this crown – after experiencing plenty of turbulence this season – would most definitely be one to savor.
”Going into this season, I don’t think anybody could have guessed or predicted the ups and downs and the roller coaster we’ve been on,” Curry said Thursday as the Warriors prepped for the possible clincher. ”So, definitely a different year, just overall, personally with injuries Brian O'Neill Jersey Elite , as a team with dealing with injuries, dealing with the kind of expectations that have been placed on us from the outside and the noise around us as a team.”
They went 67-15 on the way to the NBA title in 2015, matched that record on the way to another title last season and went 73-9 – the best record in league history – in 2016 only to fall short in the finals against Cleveland. That series, one where the Warriors led 3-1, changed when they couldn’t finish the job while being presented with serious adversity.
This year, there’s been a toughness to go along with the finesse.
They overcame deficits of 17 and 15 points against Houston in the final two games of the Western Conference finals, the second of those on the Rockets‘ home floor. They overcame an 11-point deficit in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against Cleveland, and rallied from 13 points down to beat the Cavaliers in Game 3 on Wednesday.
They needed 27 starting lineups in the regular season, and five so far in the playoffs. But they’re one win away from getting their fingerprints all over another Larry O’Brien Trophy.
”You can never count out a champion, no matter what’s going on in the course of their season,” Cleveland star LeBron James said, lauding the Warriors. ”It’s impossible to do that, because they’re built from a different cloth Authentic Baker Mayfield Jersey , and I know that firsthand. When you win a championship and you’re around guys for a long period of time, and you know what you’re capable of doing, all you need is to get healthy.
”If you can get healthy and guys are playing at the right level at the same time, then you can feel like you can beat anybody.”
They got healthy.
And they’re about to beat everybody.
They did it the hard way, without question. Houston finished seven games ahead of the Warriors in the regular season, earning the right to be the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs. If the Rockets had Chris Paul for Game 6 or Game 7 of that series, if Paul’s hamstring hadn’t betrayed him at the worst possible time, then the Warriors could very well be on vacation right now.
”Every season is very different,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. ”Every journey is a new one each season. Yet the cumulative effect on multiple journeys adds up, and we have felt that this year. I think it’s been our most inconsistent season. It’s been our most difficult season. But our guys sense the finish line, and they turned it on right from the beginning of the playoffs defensively.”
The finish line is now within sight.
If the Warriors finish this off – no team in NBA history has blown a 3-0 series lead – then all the hiccups of the regular season will be forgotten. There will be a parade in the Bay Area before long, championship rings to hand out and another banner to unfurl on opening night next season, and more free agents likely will take a look at signing with Golden State in an effort to add to their own jewelry collections.
But if things get rocky next season Authentic M.J. Stewart Jersey , the Warriors will also have the experiences from this year to draw upon. In short, not looking their best at times this season might ultimately make them better.
”It’s been a crazy ride,” Curry said. ”So now we’ve just got to finish the job.”
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鈥?Matt Bryant kicked five field goals, including a 56-yarder, for all of Atlanta’s second-half points and the Falcons clinched a playoff spot by beating the Carolina Panthers 22-10 on Sunday.After the teams played to a 7-7 halftime tie, the 42-year-old Bryant kicked field goals of 30, 42, 30, 56 and 33 yards without a miss.Atlanta (10-6) clinched the No. 6 seed in the NFC and will play at the Los Angeles Rams next week in the first round of the playoffs.On a day when Cam Newton and the Panthers’ offense struggled, Bryant’s 15 points provided a margin too great for Carolina to overcome.The Panthers (11-5) had a playoff spot secured entering the weekend, but they couldn’t improve their position.Minnesota’s 23-10 win over Chicago earlier Sunday ended the Panthers’ hopes of a first-round bye. The loss to the Falcons ended Carolina’s goal of winning the NFC South, and the Panthers will open the playoffs at New Orleans.Matt Ryan completed 28 of 45 passes for 317 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown pass to Devonta Freeman on Atlanta’s opening drive Authentic Matt Duchene Jersey , and no interceptions.The Panthers pulled even on Newton’s 4-yard scoring pass to Devin Funchess late in the first half.Newton threw three second-half interceptions. The third interception, by Robert Alford in the end zone with 8 seconds remaining, ended the Panthers’ final drive. Newton completed 14 of 34 passes for 180 yards and one touchdown.With the game tied in the third quarter, the Falcons had an apparent touchdown taken off the board when a review showed Mohamed Sanu didn’t maintain control of a 12-yard catch in the end zone. The ball hit the ground after Sanu collided with Julio Jones, who also was crossing to the middle of the end zone.The Falcons settled for Bryant’s first 30-yard field goal for a 10-7 lead.Newton led the Panthers on a 16-play touchdown drive that consumed more than half of the second quarter and tied the game at 7. Newton gained the needed yard on a fourth-down keeper, but the true back-breaking play for Atlanta’s defense was his 27-yard pass to Brenton Bersin on a third-and-23 play. The pass set up Newton’s 4-yard scoring pass to Funchess.SLOW STARTNewton was 0 for 9 before finally completing his final seven passes of the first half. Newton completed his first pass to McCaffrey 鈥?for a loss of 3 yards 鈥?midway through the second quarter.MILESTONE FOR JULIOJones caught a 14-yard pass midway through the third quarter to reach 9,000 career yards faster than any receiver since the 1970 merger.The two-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl selection last month set the league mark with the most catches and yards receiving in a receiver’s first 90 games.Jones finished with five catches for 80 yards. He survived an injury scare after he took a big hit from Carolina strong safety Mike Adams on the opening drive. He returned to the field on the same drive, which ended with Ryan’s touchdown pass to Freeman.NO STEWARTRunning back Jonathan Stewart was due to back tightness. The Panthers also were without two more starters: safety Kurt Coleman (ankle), and right guard Trai Turner (concussion).UP NEXTPanthers: Carolina will play at New Orleans next week in the first round of the NFC playoffs.Falcons: Atlanta will visit the Rams next week in the first round of the playoffs..
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