Warriors make history, reach 3rd straight Finals with sweep of Spurs
Warriors make history, reach 3rd straight Finals with sweep of Spurs
SAN ANTONIO — Early in the second quarter Monday night, as the AT&T Center big screen showed Draymond Green crumpling to the floor, a capacity crowd rained down a chorus of boos.
After looking to pass on the left wing, Green had treated a slight bump to the face from Jonathon Simmons’ left elbow like a knockout blow.
The textbook flop, dramatic even by Green’s standards, was convincing enough to draw the foul call.
In capping its Western Conference finals sweep of the Spurs with a 129-115 rout, Golden State amplified an important question:
Can any team, even LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, seriously test it in a seven-game series?
The Warriors became the first team in NBA history to start a postseason 12-0.
Though admittedly depleted, a San Antonio club that piled up 61 regular-season wins threatened Golden State only in Game 1 — a matchup in which it squandered a 23-point, third-quarter lead.
[...] with Cleveland up 2-1 on Boston in the Eastern Conference finals, the Warriors have nine days before their third straight NBA Finals appearance to iron out their few nagging miscues.
Two nights after committing 21 turnovers in Game 3, Golden State coughed the ball up 17 times Monday.
Without Kawhi Leonard (sprained left ankle), Tony Parker (ruptured left quadriceps tendon) and David Lee (left knee injury), the Spurs were overwhelmed on both sides of the floor.
Kevin Durant, fresh off his 33-point, 10-rebound gem in Game 3, needed only 13 shots to pair his 12 rebounds with 29 points.
Stephen Curry again conjured memories of his unanimous MVP season, repeatedly racing past befuddled defenders and scoring a game-high 36 points.
Along with perhaps the most blatant flop of his career, Green came close to a triple-double (16 points, eight rebounds, eight assists).
While the Warriors shot 55.8 percent from the field, the Spurs shot 42.3 percent.
Five-time All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge, in need of a memorable night with Leonard, Parker and Lee sidelined, instead mustered only eight points in 22 minutes.
San Antonio surrendered a 13-0, first-quarter run to Golden State and dug a 22-point hole early in the third.
With less than two minutes left and the home team down 124-108, Spurs guard Manu Ginobili walked to the bench to loud and sustained chants from the fans showing appreciation for his 15 seasons and four championships in a San Antonio uniform.
Even the Warriors stopped to applaud.
Ginobili also was in the starting lineup, his first start of any kind in more than three years.
The tributes bookending his evening were a fitting way to honor the 39-year-old shooting guard in what may have been his final game.
[...] as the Spurs celebrate Ginobili and reflect on another quality season, the Warriors stare down a bigger task: exorcising the memory of last June’s 3-1 Finals collapse to Cleveland.
The Cavaliers, who started the playoffs 10-0 before Sunday’s Game 3 loss to the Celtics, appear capable of challenging Golden State in a way it hasn’t been in months.
Connor Letourneau is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.
Email: cletourneau@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Con_Chron
Ending it early
A look at what the Warriors did in the first quarter of their three series-clinching Game 4 wins:
Blazers
Jazz
Spurs
Score
Biggest lead
Field goals
History-making dozen
The Warriors on Monday became the first team in NBA history to win the first 12 games of a postseason:
FIRST ROUND
WEST SEMIFINALS
WEST FINALS
