Michael Naulty, Sophomore
Kawhi Leonard carried the Toronto Raptors to their first NBA Finals as a franchise this year and he plans to help bring the Larry O'Brien Trophy back to the city of Toronto, according to NBA. Their opponent, the Golden State Warriors, have had five straight finals appearance. This year they will be pursuing the three-peat, and make history as a team and a franchise. The Raptors are lead by forwards Kawhi Leonard and Pascal Siakam. In game one of the NBA finals, Leonard had 23 points, which was unexpected for him. Throughout the playoffs, Leonard has been consistently averaging 30 points per game, while shooting just under 50% from the field. Siakam unexpectedly scored 32 points in game one, and Siakam also shot over 82% in game one, showing how much of a presence he can be when he needs to be. The Warriors lost game one, most likely because they were without the presence of Kevin Durant. They had less energy and seemed slower offensively. The Warriors back-court showed no signs of fatigue throughout the whole game as well. Steph Curry did what he does best and had 34 points despite the loss, and Klay Thompson had 21 points as well. Draymond Green had his 4th straight triple-double with 10-10-10, he also showed how he can be the X factor of this years finals.
Going into game two was difficult for the Warriors but they walked away with the win after a clutch three-point shot from Andre Iguodala,to put them up by five points with five seconds left. Demarcus Cousins also made his first NBA finals start in his career and had 10 points with 11 rebounds and showed how well he can move the ball, as well as be a presence on the defensive end. No surprise that the Warriors back-court came to play in game two as well, Steph Curry finished with 23 points and Klay Thompson had to leave the game early with a hamstring injury. However, he still managed to put up 25 points for the Warriors. Draymond Green also pushed the ball throughout the whole game and exposed the Raptors transition defense. Green had 17 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. Green has been the most valuable player thus far for the Warriors, showing his ability to pass the ball better than most power forwards, and also showing his athleticism in transition. Game three will be held at in Oakland, as the Raptors had home court advantage for both game one and game two.
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