Game 1 is in the books. The Warriors defeated the Blazers 121-109 in front of a loud Oracle Arena crowd. To their credit, the Blazers kept up with the Dubs for the first three quarters. Going into the fourth quarter the game tied at 88 a piece, but the Warriors were able to pull away behind a great performance from Draymond Green. Not only did he almost record a triple-double, but also showed why he should be the Defensive Player of the Year with 5 blocks against the Blazers.

In Kevin Durant’s first playoff game as a Warrior, he led the team with 32 points. He also notched 10 boards to give him the double-double, which is impressive this is only his fourth game since returning from the knee injury. That is why it was so crucial for him to get back and play some regular season games to get his legs back under him and with every game he will only get stronger.

Steph Curry also had a big game for the Warriors, scoring 29 points with five boards and four assists. Klay Thompson struggled early on and could never find a consistent rhythm, he finished with 15 points. Ian Clark was a nice surprise, he scored 12 points off the bench by hitting four out of five shots, which included two from behind the arc.

The Blazers were able to keep this game close mainly because of the play of their backcourt. Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum combined for 75 of the 109 total points for the Blazers. They were having their way for most of the game, penetrating at will and they were hitting their perimeter shots. The Warriors will need to work on keeping these two guys on check if they want t0 make this a short series.

Good win for the Warriors to get this series started. We can’t overlook the importance of Green to this team. He affects the game in so many ways and his energy is infectious. Today, he not only proved that he deserves the DPOY, but the Warriors will go as far as Green takes them.

 

 

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