Getty Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors dribbles past James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets during Game Five of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at ORACLE Arena on May 08, 2019 in Oakland, California.
The Golden State Warriors visit the Houston Rockets in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals and their star forward Kevin Durant will not play after suffering a right calf strain on Wednesday night.
“He’s not going to play Game 6,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr told Tim Kawakami of The Athletic. “We can all pretend and just say he’s doubtful. But he’s not playing Game 6.”
Friday, May 10 at 9:00 PM ET
Toyota Center
Coverage: ESPN
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Bookmaker
- Golden State Warriors vs. Houston Rockets (-7 at -110)
- Over/Under: 211.5 at -110
The Splash Brothers Are Back
Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have 25 points each in the same game for the first time this postseason. Their 50 combined points are their most in a game this postseason.
Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry struggled from beyond the arc in Game 4, shooting a combined 5-for-20 but they were 8-for-21 on Wednesday’s 104–99 win.
Thompson played his best game of the series and finished with 27 points on 11 of 20 shooting and 5 of 10 from downtown, while Curry scored 25 points, despite going just 9-for-23 from the field and 3-for-11 from 3-point range.
Curry did score 12 points in the fourth quarter when the Warriors needed him the most and he has to replicate that level of play for the rest of this series. Kevin Durant had 22 points, five rebounds and four assists in 32 minutes before his injury while James Harden finished with a game-high 31 points to go along with eight assists, four rebounds and four steals in 45 minutes.
Steph Curry before Kevin Durant’s injury: 9 PTS (4-14 FG, 1-8 3PT)
After: 16 PTS (5-9 FG, 2-3 3 PT)
With Kevin Durant possibly out for the rest of this series, Stephen Curry has to find a rhythm from distance and Klay Thompson will be needed now more than ever, as his production could mean the difference between winning or losing this game.
Where Was Harden?
James Harden’s shot chart over the final 8:30.
No Durant.
Chance to steal Game 5 with a chance to then close out at home.
The guard with the most dominant scoring season in 30 years…
… takes one shot.
James Harden had a big night but he completely disappeared when the Rockets had a chance to take advantage of Durant’s absence. He had a usage rate of 22.9 percent in Game 5, his lowest in any game, regular season or playoffs, this year.
Harden having just a single shot attempt in the final eight minutes of the fourth quarter is unacceptable and he couldn’t explain why he wasn’t taking over the game when it was his moment to do so.
“I mean, I don’t know. I have to go back and look at the game. Whether it’s other guys were getting shots, open looks, trying to make the right plays at certain points in the game, I’m not sure.”
Warriors vs. Rockets Trends and Prediction
The Under is:
- 10-2-1 in Golden State’s last 13 games against a team with a winning percentage above .600
- 10-3-1 in Golden State’s last 14 games against a team with a winning straight up record
- 5-1-1 in Houston’s last seven home games against a team with a winning road record
- 18-5-3 in Houston’s last 26 games playing on one day of rest
- 7-2-1 in Houston’s last 10 games following a straight up loss
- 35-16-1 in Houston’s last 52 games against a team with a winning percentage above .600
- 18-7-1 in the last 26 meetings
- 20-8-1 in the last 29 meetings in Houston
Sports analytics and strategy site Positive Residual explained that offensive rebounding was among the biggest differences between Games 3 and 4 and Game 5 (below is the offensive rebound percentage based on the total number of offensive rebounds available while they were in active play):
Game 1
Rockets: 9%
Warriors: 26%
Game 2
Rockets: 27%
Warriors: 37%
Game 3
Warriors: 16%
Rockets: 38%
Game 4
Warriors 18%
Rockets 27%
Game 5
Rockets 21%
Warriors 28%
The Warriors grabbed 28 percent of the total number of offensive rebounds available while they were in active play on Wednesday while the Rockets pulled down just 21 percent. Replicating that effort can help the Warriors be competitive in this game.
Pick: Under 211.5
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