Curry
Tyronn Lue and Steve Kerr, rival coaches in the NBA Finals, struggled Thursday to fit the Golden State Warriors among the league’s greatest clubs, some of which they played upon.
Kerr’s Warriors own a 3-0 lead over Lue’s defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers in the best-of-seven series that could end with a Golden State sweep Friday in Cleveland.
The Warriors are 15-0 in the playoffs, the best post-season run by any North American sports team, having swept Portland, Utah and San Antonio and pushed Cleveland to the brink.
They would become the first NBA squad to make an unbeaten playoff charge to the crown by winning Friday.
“What this team has accomplished is remarkable,” Kerr said. “And we have had some good fortune, too. We have stayed healthy, knock on wood. So far things have gone our way. Our guys have really played well and competed at a high level.
Kerr won five NBA titles as a guard, three of them alongside Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls from 1996-1998 and two more with the San Antonio Spurs.
Lue won NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000 and 2001, a member of the lineup led by Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant.
The Lakers’ 15-1 playoff run in 2001 is the best playoff record by any NBA champion but could be eclipsed by Golden State, a club Lue struggled to compare to his former team.