Today, the NBA playoffs continue, and the Golden State Warriors still have to face the Denver Nuggets.
The Warriors are clearly above the Nuggets, who have led their opponents 3-1 in the first four games, and their only goal is to quickly eliminate their opponents to advance to avoid the long night. In order to achieve this goal, the Warriors took the initiative to change sides in today's fifth game of the series, putting Curry back in the starting lineup.
Curry is undoubtedly the absolute core of the Warriors, but he was injured in the final stages of the regular season, was limited by playing time after his return in the playoffs, and also had to sit on the bench.
In fact, the Warriors are indeed protecting Curry, and letting the latter start from the bench can reduce his defensive pressure and increase the offensive ability of the Warriors bench. Today, the Warriors put up the ultimate five small lineups, trying to crush the Nuggets from the beginning.
Curry, Poole, Thompson, Wiggins and Green, the Warriors' ultimate five-small lineup surprised the Nuggets, but the Nuggets still played their own basketball and played the power of Jokic. Throughout the game, Jokic scored a quasi-triple-double of 30 points, 19 rebounds and eight assists on 12-of-18 shooting.
However, Curry made a big splash in this game, shooting 30 points and 5 assists on 10-of-22 shooting, the Warriors' starting lineup only Poole scored in double figures, Thompson contributed 15 points and 9 rebounds, Wiggins scored 12 points, and Green scored 11 points and 6 assists.
So far, the Warriors have defeated the Nuggets 102-98, and the total score is 4-1. The Nuggets had a very difficult season, relying on Jokic to reach the playoffs with injuries to both Murray and Michael Potter Jr. The Warriors' goal is still to impact the championship, and they are making the most of each round of the series to adjust the lineup.