NBA playoff preview: Warriors-Jazz schedule, lineups, keys to victory
Could the Golden State Warriors’ first-round beating of the Portland Trail Blazers have been more convincing? They swept the Blazers by an average of 18 per game. All that bought them was significant time off to rest.
The Jazz are in for it. Not only were they pushed in their first-round series, but they’ll need to turn around in two days and face the West’s juggernaut.
*If necessary. All times Eastern.
- Game 1 - Tuesday, May 2 at Oakland, 10:30 p.m. on TNT
- Game 2 - Thursday, May 4 at Oakland, 10:30 p.m. on ESPN
- Game 3 - Saturday, May 6 in Utah, 8:30 p.m. on ABC
- Game 4 - Monday, May 8 in Utah, on TNT
- Game 5 - in Oakland, TBD
- Game 6 - in Utah, TBD
- Game 7 - in Oakland, TBD
Season series - Warriors lead 2-1
Starting lineups:
(First-round statistics)
- Warriors – Stephen Curry (29.8 ppg, 6.5 apg, 5.3 rpg,) Kevin Durant (21.0 ppg, 2.0 apg, 7.0 rpg, Klay Thompson (18.3 ppg, 1.3 apg, 2.3 rpg), Draymond Green (13.8 ppg, 7.5 apg, 9.5 rpg), Zaza Pachulia (6.3 ppg, .8 apg, 4.5 rpg)
- Jazz – Gordon Hayward (23.3 ppg, 2.8 apg, 7.2 rpg), George Hill (16.8 ppg, 3.5 apg, 4.2 rpg, Joe Ingles (5.7 ppg, 4.7 apg, 3.7 rpg), Boris Diaw (5.3 ppg, 2.5 apg, 1.7 rpg), Rudy Gobert (10.3 ppg, 1.0 apg, 8.3 rpg)
Warriors win if – They stay healthy. At this point, there’s probably not a bigger concern for the Warriors. Durant returned for Game 4 vs. the Blazers after suffering a calf strain and they hardly struggled in his absence as reserves JaVale McGee and Patrick McCaw proved their worth. There’s also optimism that Shaun Livingston and Matt Barnes can return from injuries. The bigger question may be if temporary head coach Mike Brown can seamlessly develop a rotation while Steve Kerr addresses complications from a back surgery.
Jazz win if– Well, the Jazz aren't likely to win this series, but a cool head is just about their best chance of stealing a game or two. This is uncharted territory for this Utah group. Not many thought they'd take down the Clippers, and even fewer will predict them knocking off the Warriors. They've got good depth with Joe Johnson (16.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg) coming off the bench and a defensive stalwart in Gobert. Perhaps most importantly, veterans Hayward and Hill weren't fazed by a hostile Game 7 road environment, which could bode well for what they're about to face in Oracle Arena.
Need to know:
- Warriors - For all of their offensive prowess, perhaps not enough attention gets paid to the Warriors’ defense. They held the Blazers to under 40% shooting in the first round, the lowest of any playoff team. They also led the NBA throughout the regular season in that category.
- Jazz - Before this postseason, Utah hadn't made the playoffs since 2012. Beyond that, the Jazz hadn't won a postseason series since 2010 when Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer were still in their primes.
Follow USA TODAY Sports' Michael Singer on Twitter @msinger.
