Oakland (USA): Golden State Warriors sharpshooters Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, nicknamed the “Splash Brothers” for their skill at sinking 3-pointers, welcomed Draymond Green as an adopted soggy sibling Sunday at the NBA Finals.
Green scored a game-high 28 points, his 11-of-20 shooting from the floor including 5-of-8 from 3-point range, to spark the defending champion Warriors over Cleveland Cavaliers 110-77, giving Golden State a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven championship series.
“If the game says shoot, you’re supposed to shoot, because usually when you don’t it turns into a disaster,” Green said. “My teammates trust me to take those shots. They find me (with passes). It’s up to me to knock them down.”
Curry scored 18 points and Thompson added 17 with both hitting 4-of-8 3-pointers, but when the Cavaliers defenders cracked down on the Splash duo, they flipped passes to Green and he took full advantage, producing his best scoring total in a Finals game.
“Tonight he was one of us, especially the shots he made off the dribble for three. Those aren’t easy fading away,” Thompson said. “He had an amazing game.”
Green scored 18 points in the first half, nine of them in a 20-2 second-quarter run that put the Warriors ahead to stay.
“They were really collapsing on Steph and Klay,” Green said. “They found me in a great spot to knock shots down.” Green handled Cleveland’s defensive pressure as well when the Cavaliers moved to shut him down.
“The guy made shots, not only when we left him open and contested late but he made shots in our face,” Cleveland star LeBron James said. “We know he’s a key for their team.”
Carried away
Even Green admits he got a bit carried away on one of his long shots, picking up the ball off a dribble and fading back from beyond the 3-point arc only to watch the shot amazing fall through the hoop.
