Steve Kerr: “Steph was breathtaking”

The Golden State Warriors beat the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals by a score of 107-88. The two teams kept it close at halftime, but the Warriors once again caught fire in the third quarter, outscoring the Celtics 35-14. Unlike Game 1, Golden State held on to this lead and finished Game 2 with the momentum-shifting victory.

Here are some of the takeaways from the Warriors postgame pressers:

Steph Curry: “If you try hard, good things will happen”

Stephen Curry finished the game with 29 points on 9-of-21 shooting from the field and 5-of-12 shooting from deep. His gravity manipulated Boston’s defense perfectly as he set up several open shots for his teammates after drawing the extra defender.

However, during postgame, it wasn’t Curry’s offense but his excellent performance on defense that received praise from the rest of the team. Curry has always been a decent defender because of his effort and basketball IQ. Several of his teammates noted that he has become even better on that side of the floor after his weight training throughout the season added on some extra strength.

Draymond Green: “It’s my job to set the tone on the defensive side of the ball”

Draymond Green is and always will be Golden State’s emotional leader. Game 2 was no different as Green was on a mission to play more physically than Boston. This showed throughout the game as he got into it with several players on the Celtics. The rest of the team noticed Green’s intensity and followed his lead.

Jordan Poole: “Somebody was going to hit a half-court shot in this series… I just happened to hit it”

Here’s Jordan Poole hitting the shot of the night.

Poole finished the game with 17 points, but he did most of his damage at the end of the third quarter where he demoralized the entire Celtics team with a pair of shots from deep and DEEP.

Gary Payton II: “I was itching to get out there”

Gary Payton II was a big boost for Golden State in his first game back since fracturing his elbow. His elite on-ball activity brought up the defensive intensity whenever he was in the game. Although many feared his elbow would affect his offense, that wasn’t the case in this one as he finished the game shooting 3-of-3 from the field, including a corner three-pointer, for a total of 7 points. In his postgame presser, Payton seems to be over his injury saying that his elbow doesn’t hurt while he’s in the game.

Quote of the Night

The quote of the night belongs to Draymond Green. Here, he makes it clear that Curry has always been the engine that has made the Warriors offense so lethal throughout the years.

*Bonus Quote*

Here’s Green’s son, DJ, answering interview questions in a way that would make the 2015 “Championship Parade” Draymond proud.

Recap

With this win, the Warriors even the series at 1-1. Golden State is now only 3 wins away from another NBA championship. Both teams will now travel to Boston where the Warriors will attempt to take back home court advantage for a decisive Game 3 matchup on Wednesday night.