Raptors know what to expect in Game 6 against Warriors

When Steve Kerr reflected on the Golden State Warriors’ NBA Finals Game 1 loss to the Toronto Raptors, he spoke of the lack of familiarity between the two teams.

For four straight years, Kerr knew what to expect from LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. But in the small sample of two regular season games against the Raptors for the Warriors to analyze, Steph Curry and Draymond Green were absent for the Toronto contest while Kawhi Leonard skipped the game at Oracle Arena.

Oh, right, Leonard, the superstar who has completely reshaped the dynamic of this Raptors team from what it’s been the previous five seasons. Add the Marc Gasol trade before the February deadline and it’s easy to see why there was going to be an adjustment period for even an opponent as strong as the Warriors.

The Raptors, despite being well aware of the Splash Brothers and core pieces like Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston, have had to deal with a fair bit of uncertainty over the course of this series. Game-to-game swirled around questions regarding Kevin Durant’s health status, as did what DeMarcus Cousins could bring to the table after his time on the sidelines. Would Klay Thompson play Game 3? Would Kevon Looney play Game 4? In Game 5, there was a clear lack of familiarity in going up against a Warriors team adding a two-time Finals MVP to the mix and how the Raptors would have adjusted over the course of the game and the series will now forever remain a mystery.

For the first time this series, the Raptors actually have certainty over who they’ll see on the court and what they can expect from the Warriors. There’s also the confidence they can draw from having won their two previous games at Oracle Arena against a team that will be virtually identical to the one they saw in Game 4.

Cousins showed signs of life in Game 4, much like he did in Game 2, and should replace Durant in the starting lineup. Kevon Looney is going to give them whatever he can off the bench, much like he did in Game 2, while the spacing boost the Warriors received from Durant’s presence is gone.

“To be able to come out and just switch every time somebody sets a ball screen or a down screen or the DHO (dribble hand-off) or whatever screen and just switch, switch, switch, switch, switch,” Nurse said on the impact those 12 minutes with Durant had and allowed Draymond Green to play the five. “Keep every player in front of you and not really have to ever put two on the ball, because they're all pretty good defenders.

“We can only prepare for the guys that are out there and what they're going to do,” Nick Nurse said at Wednesday’s media availability. “We don't know that they can't still find a lineup with Draymond at the five. We just got to kind of prepare for all possibilities.”

If the Warriors look to go Hampton five-esque and maximize switchability, they will be doing so while either sacrificing spacing, switchability, size or some combination of the three. Livingston can switch but can’t space. Alfonzo McKinnie has been a non-factor all series and has been eaten up on the defensive end, while Jordan Bell has barely seen the floor after a disastrous Game 1 start. Life without Durant isn’t quite the same.

What the Warriors have thrived off of in their two wins this series — and will need to carry into Game 6 — is an awesome display of championship mettle. Their grit has given them the opportunity to play at Oracle Arena one last time and force one game to decide it all.

Toronto would have loved to close out the series in front of their home fans but as Marc Gasol put it so eloquently earlier this post-season, growth does not come on one’s own terms. Perhaps there was a bit more to learn for this team that — outside of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green — doesn’t truly know what it’s like to get over the final hurdle.

What has been the key for the Raptors in learning and improving over the past three series where they have faced some adversity is not getting bogged down by it. Losing a six-point lead for the championship with just over three minutes remaining and all the momentum in the world on your home floor would break a lot of teams, especially the Raptors of the past, but they have rewritten the narratives of the past at every opportunity and their mentality is a big reason why.

“We have been the same team all year,” Lowry said Wednesday. “We don't get too up, we don't get too down. We live in the moment. We understand that today is today and tomorrow will be another test of who our group will be on the road. We'll be against a team that will be ready to go, but we'll be ready to play, too.”

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