Getty Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry
The Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors collide in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals on Thursday night.
Thursday, May 16 at 9:00 PM ET
ORACLE Arena
Coverage: ESPN
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Bookmaker
- Portland Trail Blazers vs. Golden State Warriors (-8 at -105)
- Over/Under: 218 at -110
Splash Brothers Win Round 1 against Lillard and McCollum
The Warriors didn’t seem to miss reigning two-time NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant in Game 1 as they led most of the way, taking care of the Trail Blazers in an easy 116-94 win.
This series features arguably the two best backcourts in the league and the Splash Brothers prevailed on Tuesday; Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum combined for 36 points but Stephen Curry alone matched that total and Klay Thompson had 26 points.
Warriors other guys are going to have to make plays with how Blazers are trying to take away Klay off screens. Slips and cuts are open. Klay comes off the stagger with an empty corner, Turner stays at the nail to be there on the catch. Jerebko pops, no one to help to his shot.
The Trail Blazers had three players score in double-figures besides Lillard and McCollum, led by Rodney Hood and Maurice Harkless, who finished with 17 points each. Six bench players saw more than 10 minutes of action for the Warriors and they are firing on all cylinders at both ends of the court, which is concerning for a Trail Blazers team that lacks depth.
Poor production from the second unit has been an issue for the Warriors all season long, as they ranked near the bottom of the NBA in scoring in the regular season and the playoffs but their reserves stepped up in Game 1, led by Jonas Jerebko’s nine points and five rebounds and all eight players finished with a positive plus/minus (+/-).
Trail Blazers vs. Warriors Trends and Prediction
The Under is:
- 6-0 in Golden State’s last six Western Conference Finals games
- 11-3-1 in Golden State’s last 15 games against a team with a winning percentage above .600
- 11-4 in Golden State’s last 15 games following an ATS win
- 8-3 in Golden State’s last 11 games following a straight up win of more than 10 points
- 13-5 in Golden State’s last 18 home games
- 15-6-1 in Golden State’s last 22 games playing on one day of rest
- 20-8 in Golden State’s last 28 games against Northwest Division opponents
- 4-1 in the last five meetings in Golden State
Team rankings based on pace in the playoffs:
Trail Blazers – 11th (98.8 possessions per game)
Warriors – 7th (101.8 possessions per game)
Bench production similar to Game 1 will force the Trail Blazers to focus on more players, which will create open looks for the Splash Brothers. The defense also made a difference for the Warriors on Tuesday; limiting Lillard and McCollum to just 36 points combined on 11 of 31 (35.4 percent) shooting and 3 of 10 from 3-point range (30.0 percent).
Lillard was just 4-for-12 from the field on his way to scoring 19 points and he also turned the ball over seven times while McCollum had 17 points on 7-for-19 from the field. The Warriors suffocated Lillard and McCollum on defense, swarming them with multiple defenders on every pick-and-roll, which forced them to make tough passes, getting the ball out off their hands.
The Trail Blazers were only 30-for-83 from the field (36.1 percent) and 7-for-28 from beyond the arc (25.0 percent), which is not enough production to keep up with the Warriors, even if Kevin Durant is out.
Pick: Under 218
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