The Warriors will fittingly honor the We Believe run as they host the Jazz on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. PST for Game 1 of their second round series
Contrary to some of my Golden State of Mind comrades, I have maintained for weeks now that I really wanted to see a second round series between the Golden State Warriors and L.A. Clippers.
My reasons were delightfully hateful: I simply wanted the opportunity to watch the Warriors to trounce Flop City into oblivion on national TV, sending the L.A. Floppers into rebuilding and writing the final chapter of what was once considered one of the NBA’s most promising rivalries. Ultimately, the Utah Jazz did the dirty work for the Warriors but ending that team’s run in the second round would’ve had some poetic justice to it, just in the interest of narrative consistency.
Ultimately, watching the Jazz send the Clippers home turned out to be just as fulfilling. Having defeated the Clips, the Jazz have advanced to the second round to face the Warriors in a series that will begin on Tuesday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m. and bring it's own nostalgic narrative with it.
10th anniversary of the We Believe run
The last time the Warriors and Jazz met in the playoffs was 2007, during the magical We Believe run in which a rugged Utah team advanced to the Western Conference Finals, Baron Davis had arguably the filthiest playoff dunk of all-time, Derek Fisher would have a heroic moment of his own (long before becoming Matt Barnes’ arch nemesis off the court), and now Warriors-assistant Jarron Collins was coming off the bench for Utah. For Warriors fans, the 2007 loss to the Jazz was the postseason finale for what still stands as one of the most exhilarating periods in franchise history; for the Jazz, it was the last time they reached the Western Conference Finals.
Fittingly, the Warriors have planned to bring back members of the We Believe crew for Tuesday’s game to honor the historic run — according to Connor Letourneau of the S.F. Chronicle, Baron Davis, Monta Elllis, Stephen Jackson, and Jason Richardson are among those expected to attend.
Anyone know what Andrei Kirilenko is up to?
Second round schedule
The following is the second round schedule, as reported by Anthony Slater of the Bay Area News Group.
Game 1 in Oakland: Tuesday, May 2nd, 7:30 p.m. on TNT
Game 2 in Oakland: Thursday, May 4th, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
Game 3 in Utah/LA: Saturday, May 6th, 5:30 p.m. on ABC
Game 4 in Utah/LA: Monday, May 8th, time TBD on TNT
Game 5* in Oakland: Wednesday, May 10th, time TBD on TNT
Game 6* in Utah/LA: Friday, May 12th, time TBD on ESPN
Game 7* in Oakland: Sunday, May 14th, time TBD on TBD