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Warriors vs Thunder NBA playoff preview: Golden State in Oklahoma City for Game 3

Can Golden State take game 3 and the series lead against Oklahoma City? It’s anyone's game as the Warriors hit the road to take on the Thunder!

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Matchup
Oklahoma City Thunder logo
Golden State Warriors
1-1 (0-0 ROAD)
vs
Oklahoma City Thunder
1-1 (0-0 HOME)
Details
May 22, 2016
Chesapeake Energy Arena  — Oklahoma City, OK
5 p.m. PST
TNT | KNBR 680 AM
Blog Buddy: Welcome to Loud City
Projected Starters
Stephen Curry G Russell Westbrook
Klay Thompson G Andre Roberson
Harrison Barnes F Kevin Durant
Draymond Green F Serge Ibaka
Andrew Bogut C Steven Adams
Key Injuries
None
None

★★★

Team Overviews

The Warriors

Stephen Curry finished with 28 points in Game 2 on Tuesday night and the internet had fun tweeting about it!

• Andre Iguodala had a solid night, dropping 14 points along with three steals and a strong defensive presence.

• Golden State owned the rebounding game (45-36), finishing with 15 offensive rebounds and 15 second-chance points.

Warriors Fun Fact:

The Thunder

Kevin Durant needs to break out of his second-half slump if the  Thunder want to win. He was held to 6 points in the second half during a 23-point performance Tuesday night.

Russell Westbrook had 16 points and 12 assists, shooting 5-for-14 from the floor. He's going to need to step up his offensive presence to compete with the Warriors.

• It's going to be a rebounding battle of the big men from here on out. The Thunder were outrebounded in Game 2 against Golden State. Who's going to want it more?

Keys to the game: A healthy dose of Defense

The Warriors can definitely deliver a healthy dose of offense but what happens when you mix in a hearty serving of defense? The results can put the brakes on a offensive-minded Thunder (that struggled in Game 2) and help give the Dubs the lead in the series

Predictions

  • Stephen Curry will give OKC fans something to talk about. Predicting a great performance from Steph that can help close out a win in the fourth.
  • The Oklahoma City Thunder are are going to need to make adjustments if they want to keep the series going past five games. They're going to need Russell Westbrook to break out of his Game 2 slump.
  • Klay Thompson can be like Scottie Pippen if you were to consider Steph as Michael Jordan. Always the humble one, he's going to have a great shooting percentage tonight and wreak havoc from 3.
  • Draymond Green, as always, will record another triple-double. (Cue Ice Cube's "Today was a good day" single... better yet, E-40's "Tell me when to go.")
  • The Warriors' defensive effort will play a key factor in them stealing a win in Oklahoma City.

Win Prediction

Warriors win big on the road, 117-103.

Please don't let this happen again...

Please don't let this happen again...

ICYMI: (Posts from GSoM)

2016 NBA Western Conference Finals: Breaking down Thunder vs. Warriors, podcast style

Warriors news: Golden State's rebounding, defense making a difference in Western Conference Finals

NBA Playoffs 2016: Warriors destroy the Thunder; sports as social lubrication

Can someone PLEASE give a BROTHER a hand

Stephen Curry responds in typical fashion in must-win Game 2 for Warriors

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