1. Thought exercise: Pretend the Raptors win the NBA Finals. Where does this rank amongst postseason shockers? Our top-eight, in no real order (they don’t have to be in the Finals):
2004 Pistons over Lakers
2011 Mavericks over Heat
2019 Raptors over Warriors
2010 Celtics over Cavs
2007 Warriors over Mavericks
1976 Suns over Warriors
1995 Rockets over Magic
2. If Serge Ibaka wins a title in Toronto, joining Kevin Durant and James Harden as players whose careers got better after leaving the Thunder, that might be the final straw for OKC fans.
3. Shoutout to reader and emailer Josh Mucia, who wrote before Game 3 that “Steph goes off for 48 tomorrow.” Off by one point. By the way: You can send hate mail to read@thegrip.co.
4. It definitely seemed before the Finals like Kevin Durant would be back by Game 4. He won’t be. The circumstances of the series are serious enough for the Warriors that they’d bring Durant back if they thought he would ultimately be OK to play. It might be a more serious injury than we all know. Be nervous, Knicks fans.
5. A prediction on which players from this Finals series will make the Hall of Fame: Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, DeMarcus Cousins, Andre Iguodala, Kawhi Leonard and Kyle Lowry. (Key word here is prediction, not endorsement.)
6. As Brian Windhorst points out, at one point last summer, the Raptors had 40-1 odds to win the NBA Finals. A $10 throwaway would’ve netted $400.
7. We know Klay Thompson, who will play tonight, is one of the best catch-and-shoot players to ever grace the game. But it’s also his off the ball movement and the space he creates on the floor that makes him valuable. Per NBA.com, he runs 2.87 miles per game. Only CJ McCollum has averaged more over this postseason. His presence alone makes life for Toronto harder.
Quiz: Of the top-10 players in made 3s in NBA Finals history, three of them are playing in this series. Who are they? Answers are at the bottom.
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