SAN FRANCISCO – Coach Steve Kerr deflected questions last week during the Western Conference finals about how important the additional time off between series could be for his veteran-led and shorthanded squad.
He and the team were focused on beating the Mavericks, which Golden State did Thursday night at Chase Center to earn the franchise’s sixth NBA Finals berth in the last eight seasons.
But after having two days off, a rarity during the NBA season, Kerr returned from golfing and enjoying time with his wife, Margot, on Sunday and said the team greatly benefited from the break which allowed players a chance to recover after an exhausting few weeks.
“When you go to the Finals, it’s almost a two-month journey filled with stress and fatigue and everything else, so if you can get a little bit of a break, it’s very meaningful,” Kerr said. “Hopefully we can get healthy and have a few days of really good prep and be ready to go on the first day.”
The opportunity to allow key players more time to recover from injuries might be the biggest gain during the Warriors’ six-day gap between series.
Gary Payton II (elbow), Andre Iguodala (neck) and Otto Porter Jr. (foot) are expected to return to practice this week.
Porter, a key rotational piece this postseason in part due to his defense and rebounding abilities, injured his left foot in the first half of Game 3 of the Western Conference finals against the Mavericks. The injury, different from the foot issue that hampered him toward the end of the Western Conference semifinals, sidelined him for Games 4 and 5.
Meanwhile, Payton and Iguodala missed all of the last series against Dallas.
Payton has been out for about four weeks since he broke his left elbow in Game 2 in Memphis. He’s been spotted doing court work with his right arm and a recent report indicated he was on track to make a return this series, which is welcoming news for the Warriors who’ve missed the 28-year-old’s defensive prowess, length and athleticism.
Iguodala hasn’t played since the Warriors’ first-round series against the Nuggets as he is nursing a disc injury in his neck. The 38-year-old veteran has found ways to make positive impacts this postseason despite being unable to play. He’s served as a pseudo-coach, mentoring the young players and providing in-game feedback.
There’s a possibility all three could return at some point during the NBA Finals.
“That’s what we’re aiming for but we’ll have a better feel after the next couple of days of practice,” Kerr said.
Golden State will be well rested and rejuvenated by Game 1 of the NBA Finals Thursday, while its opponent, the winner of Game 7 Sunday night between the Heat and Celtics, will have only three days to rebound from the Eastern Conference finals, one of which will be spent on a flight to San Francisco.
“That’s huge,” Kerr said. “Conference finals were really tiring even though the series only went to five games, you play every other day. It’s very difficult when you factor in the back and forth, three and a half hour flight. Both teams felt that.
“So to be in our own beds for [more than] a week straight… is very helpful,” he continued. “But still got to go out and do all the work and get the job done.”
While some fear the long gap between series could throw the Warriors out of rhythm, center Kevon Looney said the pros far outweigh the cons of the time off.
“When you’re playing in those series, there’s a game every other day and you’re traveling most of the days, you don’t have a lot of time to get your body together,” he said. “But having two days off and a week until we play [allows] everybody get their mind right, everybody focus and get the body back to where you want to get it to. Some of the cons is there’s nothing like game rhythm, game shape, so you’ve got to make sure you’re doing all the stuff that you normally do to stay sharp.”
