OAKLAND, Calif. _ When they took the floor Thursday night, it was the Warriors' 2,070th game played at Oracle Arena, a number only notable because it was also the last. Outside, the arena was still draped in Warriors images, huge photos of players and fan-ready slogans, but it was still goodbye, just a matter of whether a parade might pass by in a few days.
Inside the arena, there were emotional signs, too. With Kevin Durant having undergone surgery to repair the ruptured Achilles tendon suffered in Game 5 three days earlier, Quinn Cook, Durant's longtime friend, warmed up in a white Durant No. 35 jersey. Towels were being handed out with an imprint honoring Oakland with the K and D highlighted for Durant.
But with all of the nods to history and the very real prospect of being eliminated with the Raptors up 3-2 in the series, it would eventually fall not to motivational touches but to performance on the court.
