Trading James Harden will always be a line on Sam Presti's résumé, but holy hell look at the roster the Thunder general manager has built. Steven Adams – drafted with the pick exchanged for Harden – has emerged as a force in the paint, part of the interior effort that has reduced Draymond Green's plus/minus to a combined minus-73 the past two games. Adams sets screens like a brick wall and, at 22, plays with the poise of a player 10 years older.Serge Ibaka, taken 24th in '08, is an annual All-Star candidate. Dion Waiters,Adidas Yeezy 350 Boost II toxic in Cleveland, is an indispensable sixth man in Oklahoma City. Andre Roberson is a defensive terror, Enes Kanter is a vacuum on the offensive glass and Randy Foye is a steady presence off the bench. "Roberson, Ibaka, Waiters, you can't have them killing us," Warriors guard Klay Thompson said. Billy Donovan isn't so much dueling Steve Kerr as he is engaging Kerr in a game of chicken, matching the Warriors coach substitution for substitution, defiantly declaring that our guys are better than yours.
Golden State was favored coming into this series, justifiably. Yet the Thunder couldn't play underdog because they didn't believe it. Westbrook believes he's better than Curry, Durant believes he's the best player in the world, and, to a man, the Thunder believe the team they have is complete. The 18 victories that separated the Warriors and the Thunder in the standings are meaningless. Golden State began the season polished, a finished product. Oklahoma City had a new coach, a returning star and a roster still maturing. Today these teams are peers, and the back-to-back drubbings the Thunder have put on the Warriors suggests Oklahoma City may be better.
Three games down, one to go and nothing is going to distract the Thunder now. Green's kick to Adams' groin in Game 3 was a hot topic, yet all Durant mustered when the NBA cleared Green to play was a shrug and a, What,Adidas Yeezy 350 Boost II Black did you expect anything else? Green has made a living getting under the skin of opponents, and none of them are in Oklahoma City. "We weren't focused on what happened with the kick," Durant said. "We were just trying to have a good practice, have a good shootaround, have a winning mindset."The streamers fell, The Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling" blared, and Durant and Westbrook didn't so much as smile. Just a towel around the neck and a high-five for teammates walking off the floor. "First team to four," Westbrook said, and these Thunder know what awaits if they get it. James has his own problem to deal with in Toronto, but if Cleveland can beat back the surging Raptors a far more dangerous foe awaits. James beat the Thunder once, making Miami, making James, world champions. One win, and the Thunder will be waiting for him, eager to do the same.
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