It was Ja Morant who had lit the first wick in the week. The leader of the Warriors had admitted that he had circled the date of the reunion with the Warriors and that he was revengeful. It was him again, in the same interview, who announced, in essence, that he feared no one in the West, and that they were only suspicious of the Celtics.
The stage was set, and the Warriors were therefore warned. Warriors on the brink of crisis after taking two slaps in New York and Brooklyn. But… we say it, we repeat it, “ never underestimate the heart of a champion“, and the Warriors sent a message to the young Grizzlies.
“We know what we want to do and we have done it many times” recalls Klay Thompson, author of 24 points and 9 rebounds. “There’s no statement that can get on our nerves… Back in the mid-2010s, I used to take this stuff to heart. But now, after 12 years in this league, I just worry about how we can be the best we can be. »
If the Warriors dominated the meeting from the first moments, we were still treated to a few scraps of a rivalry with a total of seven technical fouls! Jordan Poole was sent off, and Klay Thompson took a technical for a bad look at Dillon Brooks, who was on the ground. Rarely, we had seen Klay Thompson so reassembled, and the whole public was on fire. Something to annoy Dillon Brooks even more…
“The referees let it happen” does he think. “They did it the whole game, and then they want to get the bad guy. This is madness to me. Whistles sucked, they got the player wrong who was shooting the pitches… It was a circus. It would have needed other referees. »
“For a rivalry to really develop, there has to be, I think, several series of playoffs”
For Steve Kerr, it’s all about competition. “After the series of playoffs last season, and the fact that they are young and ambitious, it gives clashes and exchanges… But it’s healthy and it’s good. That’s the spirit of competition, and for me, that’s good. »
In the end, can we talk about rivalry? “It is clear that it is gaining momentum” confess Steve Kerr about the tension between the two teams. “But for a rivalry to really develop, there has to be, I think, several series of playoffs. Last year’s series had been hotly contested and heated. We know how good they are, we try to keep the momentum going and they try to knock us off our pedestal. It’s a very good duel ahead. »
What does Klay Thompson think of it, whose duel with Dillon Brooks animated the evening? “They are talented. We are talented. We are seasoned. » Next appointment, January 25, still at the Chase Center.
