On Thursday night, we saw once again that momentum in the playoffs is a myth. In game four of the Western Conference Finals, the Dallas Mavericks built a 99-70 lead en route to a 119-109 win to avoid being swept--but in game five, the Warriors led wire to wire, and closed out the series with a 120-110 win to advance to the NBA Finals for the sixth time in eight years, a feat that has not been accomplished since the Chicago Bulls won six championships from 1991-98. Klay Thompson had his best game of the series, pouring in a game-high 32 points on 12-25 field goal shooting, including 8-16 from three point range. All five Golden State starters scored in double figures, as did sixth man Jordan Poole, who finished with 16 points, six rebounds, and six assists. Andrew Wiggins had 18 points and 10 rebounds while continuing to be the primary defender versus Luka Doncic. Draymond Green scored 17 points on 6-7 field goal shooting, and he also had a game-high nine assists. Stephen Curry did not shoot well (5-17 from the field) but he accumulated 15 points while matching Green with nine assists. Although game five was not a vintage performance for the two-time regular season MVP, Curry received the first annual Magic Johnson Western Conference Finals MVP. Kevon Looney snared a game-high 18 rebounds while also chipping in 10 points and four assists.
Luka Doncic led the Mavericks with 28 points, but he shot just 10-28 from the field. He only scored six first half points, his lowest first half scoring total this season (regular season and playoffs included), but he scored 15 third quarter points on 5-8 field goal shooting as the Mavericks made one last desperate attempt to extend their season. The Mavericks cut a 21 point lead to eight points (92-84) with 34.2 seconds left in the third quarter, but Poole's layup before the end of the quarter pushed the Warriors' lead back to 10 points, and the Warriors maintained a double digit lead the rest of the way. Doncic received little help outside of Spencer Dinwiddie, who had 26 points on 7-12 field goal shooting.
The Mavericks reached the Western Conference Finals for the first time since their 2011 championship run, but next season they will face the challenge of proving that this season set a foundation and was not a fluke; it is not uncommon for a team to jump out of the woodwork to make one Conference Finals appearance only to fall back to the pack, as happened with the Atlanta Hawks the past couple seasons.
The Warriors await the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals; the Boston Celtics lead the Miami Heat 3-2, and can eliminate the Heat with a win at home tonight. Curry owns three championship rings, but no Finals MVPs. A fourth ring--particularly if accompanied by a Finals MVP award--will elevate Curry's historical status in the eyes of many, though it should be noted that these Warriors won their first championship versus a hobbled Cleveland team, and then won their next two championships with Kevin Durant serving as the clear number one option.