The Golden State Warriors draw first blood against the Dallas Mavericks in their best of seven series of the Western Conference Finals, with a crushing victory 112-87 on Wednesday evening in the Chase Center in California.
Dallas had a lot of good looks all through the night but couldn't score, shooting 36.5 % from the field and 23.4 % from outside the arc. The Warriors, on the other hand, shot 56.1% for the night, which led to their blowout win.
In Game 1, all three Warriors starters scored in double figures, led by Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins, and Jordan Poole, who had 21, 19, and 19 points, respectively. Otto Porter Jr., who had been sidelined with a foot injury, came off the bench to score 10 points on 5-7 shooting in 23 minutes.
Aside from scoring a game-high of 21 points, Curry also got 12 rebounds.
The Warriors' Synergy Makes Them Unstoppable
Warriors vs. Mavs Game 1 proved that Golden State still has a championship-caliber basketball team. Despite its aging players, the team still knows how to win together.
During the post-game interview, per NBC Sports, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr told reporters that his guys, especially the triumvirate of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, have developed "a synergy from playing together for a decade." They are well-versed in each other's movements and strengths in the court.
"Klay [Thompson] as well. There's a lot of value in that. Draymond has always sort of been the fulcrum of our offense as a passer, and screener. He sees the floor so well, he sees those guys working off the ball, he sees the backdoor cuts, so that was an example of those guys just knowing each other well and Draymond knowing exactly what Steph was going to do."
"There's a lot of continuity with our team. That's important. Guys read each other well," Kerr said.
The Warriors played like a well-oiled, well-calibrated machine on Wednesday night. Like when Curry kept moving when he gives up the ball on offense. As the Mavericks' defense let down their guard, Green sensed where he was going and found his longtime teammate for a backbreaking 3-pointer.
Dancing Steph has arrived 🕺😂pic.twitter.com/EV3nWUjBif
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) May 19, 2022
After sinking the shot from downtown, Curry showed some dance moves to a pumped-up crowd at the Warriors' home court.
Is Luka Doncic Hurt?
According to a report from Fan Nation, the Warriors didn't appear to have enough defensive tools to stop Doncic, especially after he torched the Phoenix Suns in the previous round, especially in Game 7. But Golden State accomplished something remarkable that everyone witnessed for the first time in this season's playoffs: Doncic can be vulnerable.
Luka Doncic was spotted holding his shoulder during the game, and some speculated on Twitter that he was hurt. Plus his face got a huge scratch due to the intense defense employed on him.
Mavericks reporter Callie Caplan tweeted Luka's response to his alleged pains: "Right shoulder: "A little bit of pain" after one shooting motion, but expects to be fine with treatment. Big face scratch: "It makes me look tougher."
Luka Doncic on his various ailments that cropped up in Game 1:
— Callie Caplan (@CallieCaplan) May 19, 2022
Right shoulder: "A little bit of pain" after one shooting motion, but expects to be fine with treatment.
Big face scratch: "It makes me look tougher."
In the loss, Doncic scored 20 points, seven rebounds, and four assists.
However, he only shot 33% from the field and 30% from the three-point range.
Doncic had been fantastic in the first two rounds of the playoffs, so this was most likely his worst performance of the 2022 NBA Playoffs.
This is the first time the Mavs have advanced past the first round of the playoffs in Doncic's career, and it's also the first time the team has advanced this far since winning the NBA Championship in 2011 against LeBron James and the Miami Heat, per Sports Illustrated.
