Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson is preparing for this Thursday's matchup against the Toronto Raptors and praised the Raptors for their strong play this season, even suggesting it could be an NBA Finals preview. Raptors head coach Nick Nurse took notice:
Nurse is in his first season as Raptors head coach, although he was with the team as an assistant from 2013-18 under former head coach Dwane Casey. Nurse noted that Thompson certainly isn't giving the Raptors any bulletin board material with his “gracious” comments.
The Raptors are leading the Eastern Conference with an outstanding 18-4 record, while the Warriors have taken their lumps of late and possess a 15-7 record. Although the Warriors are still second in the Western Conference, the dynamic of the team has been different the last couple of weeks with Stephen Curry's injury and the Kevin Durant-Draymond Green dilemma. The Warriors will have their work cut out for them Thursday against an incredibly strong opponent, but they could get a boost if Curry returns. Green remains out for sure with an injury of his own.
Nurse appears to have a great thing going in Toronto, and the roster he has right now could very well represent the East in this season's NBA Finals. The Raptors are reaping the benefits of newly acquired superstar Kawhi Leonard and a surging Pascal Siakam. Toronto is playing fantastic team ball right now, and team leader Kyle Lowry has also been a huge part of that success.
Thompson may be right about his Finals prediction, but if the Warriors hope to make a fifth straight Finals appearance, they will need to sort out their recent issues and increase their level of play.
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