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Among the reasons that the 2016 NBA Las Vegas Summer League will be different for than the regular season for new Golden State Warriors players is that they won't be playing from the position of underdog very much in the future.
Beginning the summer league tournament yesterday as the 16th seed, they're doing exactly that.
After knocking off the Houston Rockets with James Harden giggling with his buddy on the side before leaving early as his team lost, the Warriors face the top-seeded Toronto Raptors tonight.
I could pretend that I care enough about individual matchups in this game to persuade you to care, but ultimately what I'd like to see is reasons for optimism from the young players trying to make the Warriors.
Patrick McCaw has shown that he has the tools and potential to contribute at the NBA level, but the rest of the roster has either been inconsistent or worthy of question marks more than adulation. What the tournament does is at least give us a chance to see how players respond under the pressure of knowing they have to win or go home.
Otherwise, just have some fun with this one tonight.