2018 Western Conference Finals Game 7 (Warriors vs Houston Rockets)
The 2018–19 Warriors' quest for a three-peat ended in the NBA Finals, but the season was filled with records and milestones.
The 2018–19 Golden State Warriors season was the 73rd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and its 57th in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Warriors entered the season as the two-time defending NBA champions, having won back-to-back NBA championships. The Warriors attempted their first "three-peat" in franchise history, but were defeated by the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 NBA Finals. This was the Warriors' final season at Oracle Arena in Oakland, before moving to the new Chase Center in San Francisco, beginning with the 2019–20 NBA season. The Warriors won the Pacific Division title and Western Conference Championship for the fifth consecutive season. They finished with the best record in the Western Conference, with a record of 57–25. Golden State made the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season, a new franchise record. The previous record was six, in the team's first six years of existence between 1947 and 1952. Golden State recorded 50 wins for the sixth consecutive season, a franchise record. In the postseason, the Warriors defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 4–2 in the first round, the Houston Rockets 4–2 in the Western Conference Semi-finals, and swept the Portland Trail Blazers 4–0 in the Western Conference finals. The Warriors' run ended in the NBA Finals, where they lost 4–2 to the Toronto Raptors. Golden State made their fifth consecutive Finals appearance and are the second team in NBA history to achieve this feat after the Boston Celtics made ten straight between 1957–1966. The Warriors playoff run was riddled with injuries, with DeMarcus Cousins (quadriceps tear in the first round), Stephen Curry (dislocated finger in the semi-finals), Kevin Durant (calf strain in the semi-finals, ruptured achilles in the finals), Andre Iguodala (calf strain in the Western Conference finals), Klay Thompson (hamstring strain and a torn ACL in the finals), and Kevon Looney (fractured collar bone in the finals) all missing a combined total of 26 games.
- Series Result
- Warriors win 4-3
- Key Player Performance
- Kevin Durant: 43 points
- Location
- Toyota Center, Houston
- Final Score Margin
- 29-10 run in the fourth quarter
- Historical Context
- First Game 7 in franchise history
Lore & Background
The 2018–19 Warriors entered the season as two-time defending champions and attempted a three-peat, but fell to the Toronto Raptors in the NBA Finals. The team finished with the best record in the Western Conference (57–25) and won the Pacific Division. In the playoffs, they defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 4–2, the Houston Rockets 4–2, and swept the Portland Trail Blazers 4–0 before losing the Finals 4–2. The season was marked by injuries to key players, including Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Stephen Curry. Thompson set an NBA record with 14 three-pointers in a game, and Curry broke the playoff three-point record with 470. The Warriors also set franchise records for consecutive playoff appearances (seven) and consecutive 50-win seasons (six).
In Their Own Story
The Toyota Center air was thick with the smell of sweat and the deafening roar of a Houston crowd convinced they had finally slain the dragon. The Warriors stood frozen, staring at a double-digit deficit that felt insurmountable. Then, the script flipped on its head. A sudden silence fell over the arena as Chris Paul clutched his hamstring, the Rockets' engine sputtering to a halt in the final minutes. In the vacuum of Houston's stalled offense, Kevin Durant stepped into the spotlight with mechanical precision. His jumpers dropped through the net like clockwork, each bucket silencing another section of the crowd until the murmur of disbelief turned into the frantic roar of a dynasty refusing to die. It was a trial by fire that didn't end their story; it forged the legend of 'Game 7 KD'.
Reader's Guide
The entry for the 2018 Western Conference Finals Game 7 (Warriors vs Houston Rockets) has been corrected.
Did You Know?
- The Warriors made their fifth consecutive NBA Finals appearance in 2019, a feat only previously achieved by the Boston Celtics (10 straight from 1957–1966).
- Klay Thompson set an NBA record with 14 three-pointers in a single game during the 2018–19 season.
- Stephen Curry broke Ray Allen's record for most three-pointers made in the playoffs, finishing with 470.
- The Warriors had five All-Stars on their roster from the previous season, the first team to do so since the 1976 Boston Celtics.
- Golden State recorded 50 wins for the sixth consecutive season, a franchise record.
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