PREVIEW: 2015 Western Conference Finals, Game 5: Houston Rockets (1-3) At Golden State Warriors (3-1) – We Be-Sleeve

Houston Rockets (1-3) at Golden State Warriors (3-1)

Tip-off: Wednesday, May 27th, 2015 – 6:00PM PDT

Location: Oracle Arena, Oakland, CA

TV: ESPN | Radio: KNBR 680 AM

Livetweet: @LetsGoWarriors #LetsGoWarriorsLive

Projected Starting Lineups:

Rockets

Career Playoff Averages

PG: Jason Terry (15.4 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 3.3 APG)

SG: James Harden (19.2 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 4.6 APG)

SF: Trevor Ariza (10.9 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.0 APG)

PF: Josh Smith (15.3 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 2.9 APG)

C: Dwight Howard (19.5 PPG, 14.0 RPG, 1.4 APG)

Head Coach: Kevin McHale (13-15, .464)

Warriors

Career Playoff Averages

PG: Stephen Curry (25.9 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 7.5 APG)

SG: Klay Thompson (17.4 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.6 APG)

SF: Harrison Barnes (11.9 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.5 APG)

PF: Draymond Green (10.7 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 3.5 APG)

C: Andrew Bogut (6.7 PPG, 8.9 RPG, 2.2 APG)

Head Coach: Steve Kerr (11-3, .786)

Series Game Recaps/Schedule

GAME ONE: The Warriors overcame a 16-point deficit in the first half and a 28-9-11 explosion by Harden, as Curry led the way with 34 points.

GAME TWO: Harden didn’t get a shot off trailing by 1 at the buzzer as Curry and Thompson converged on a broken play, the Warriors winning 99-98 in dramatic fashion. The bench unit was tremendous and Andre Iguodala had a spectacular dunk as Golden State built its early lead.

GAME THREE: Curry scored 40 points and Green tallied another double-double as the Warriors came out strong, got a lead and increased it, ending with a 35-point blowout. Curry’s performance was legendary.

GAME FOUR: The Warriors gave up a 45-22 first quarter and, in the second quarter, Curry suffered a scary fall resulting in a head contusion, but returned in the 2nd half. However, Harden was too much for Golden State to handle, scoring 45 points.

GAME SIX, if necessary, is scheduled for Monday, 5/29/2015, in Houston, TX.

GAME SEVEN, if necessary, is scheduled for Wednesday, 5/31/2015, in Oakland, CA.

Clinching At Home

“It’s going to be an electric atmosphere. We gotta give them something to cheer about, especially in the first quarter.” — Curry

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Dwight Howard Flagrant Foul From Game 4

• For Flagrant Foul On Andrew Bogut, Dwight Howard Not Suspended For Game 5 Houston Rockets At Golden State Warriors, @LetsGoWarriors

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• Kerr re Dwight physicality “not anything I’m concerned about. You just have to adapt to that style.”

Stephen Curry Injury Update

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• PRE-GAME: Stephen Curry To Wear Elbow Sleeve For Bruised Right Side, @LetsGoWarriors

• “I won’t probably jump at any pump fakes.”

• “To see him come back, it was a comforting feeling…goes far beyond winning or losing a game just seeing that he’s OK” — Green

• “don’t think dribbling 2 basketballs is part of the protocol but we wanted to see him do something he normally does” — Warriors GM Bob Myers

• “teammates saw him at halftime. ‘He was in good spirits so we knew it wasn’t as bad as we once thought,’ Bogut said”

• “Warriors just released injury report. Stephen Curry’s name is not on it. Only Marreese Speights, who is listed as out.” — Marcus Thompson, Bay Area News Group

• “that’s why it took so long because everybody wanted to be extra cautious about it” — Myers

• Re #Warriors, concussion protocols: “this is an organization that monitors how much these guys sleep”

• “It’d be one thing if he’d went out there at halftime and warmed up and then did that” — Myers

• “While the doctors tested him, Curry watched the game on TV, ‘out of the corner of my eye.'”

• “Curry — ever the role model — was clear after the game that he did not sabotage team doctors tests”

• “‘I felt like R. Kelly in that video where the angels carried him away,’…Yeah, Curry’s fine.”

• “even players who aren’t showing symptoms should prob be held out of play”

• “I didn’t think (#StephCurry)’d be back. For him to come back like he did says a lot about him.” — Barnes

• “We all went back there, and the doctors put him through the protocols repeatedly” — Myers

Game 5 Strategy

• “We didn’t do anything to make them uncomfortable, slow them down, leave an imprint on that end” — Curry

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• “We’ve just got to come play with intensity for 48 minutes, and we’ll win the game.” — Klay

• “If I can save a couple reaches…then those couple foul calls (at the end) don’t even matter…” — Green

• “We got beat on backdoor cuts. That’s usually a pretty good sign that you’re not ready to play defense.” — Kerr

• “We’re not worried about Klay. Klay’s going to get going — he’s a scorer.” — Shaun Livingston

“can’t just continue to switch Terry and Brewer on me, and not have me take you down to the block” — Green

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(Photo: @letsgowarriors Instagram account via NBAE/Getty)