OAKLAND–If the NBA had its way, Steph Curry would make a triumphant return to the floor on Christmas Day and the Cavs and Warriors would have already begun trash talking their opponents to generate more publicity.
But while the league does its best to create story lines and intrigue by scheduling a NBA Finals rematch for a matinee slot on December 25, Golden State isn’t exactly doing its part to play into the hype. After watching their 11-game win streak disintegrate at the hands of the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night, the Warriors maintained their pragmatic, game-by-game approach and vowed to treat their Monday showdown with LeBron James and the Cavaliers as just another game.
“One of 82,” Warriors’ star Kevin Durant said, when asked how he views the holiday spectacle.
“That’s a game you don’t have to say anything,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s Christmas Day and national TV, our Finals opponent for three straight years. I don’t need the Knute Rockne speech.”
The Warriors aren’t just talking themselves into a cautious approach for Monday’s matchup, they’re putting it into practice. Though center Zaza Pachulia and backup point guard Shaun Livingston have a good chance to return from their respective injuries against Cleveland, Kerr said it would be “irresponsible” to play Curry and essentially ruled out the two-time MVP for a game that will go down as one of the most viewed contests of the year.
Curry might not be the only Warriors’ All-Star who misses the Christmas Day bash. After Saturday’s loss to Denver, Golden State forward Draymond Green skipped a postgame press conference to have an X-Ray on a left elbow injury he suffered in the defeat. Green just returned to action after missing five games with a shoulder injury, and the Warriors have already demonstrated they’ll exercise a vigilant approach for Monday.
Earlier this year, the Cavs jeopardized the magnitude of the Christmas matchup with a slow start to the season, but Cleveland is now 24-9 and sits just 1.5 games back of the Boston Celtics for first place in the Eastern Conference. Is Kerr surprised James and his teammates rebounded?
“It was really surprising, I didn’t think that they would come back,” Kerr joked. “I know LeBron is great and everything but I thought they’d be sub .500. I hope the sarcasm came through there so people aren’t tweeting that I just dissed the Cavaliers. They’re obviously a great team and they’ve changed a little bit, added some bench players who’ve been really good for them and LeBron is playing as well as he’s ever played. So great team, and it should be fun on Monday.”