1:56 pm — The AC is blasting.
A white Rolls Royce is perched on the sidewalk, covered by the overhang of a downtown San Francisco hotel.
The media shuttle to Oracle Arena, an annual June tradition.
For once, the traffic isn’t snarled as the bus rumbles along Market St., trees lining the thoroughfare, swaying gently in the breeze on a perfect summer afternoon.
Not quite 70 degrees.
As the bus crosses the lower span of the Bay Bridge, a crane stands out, then Chase Center, the future home the Warriors, glimmers in the sun, taking its place on the afternoon skyline, just beyond Oracle Park.
It’s either the fourth or fifth Finals I’ve been too. I can’t remember exactly. Amid the dynastic blur, I’ve lost count.
3:43 pm — Stay Golden.
That’s the phrase, in blue script, written across the giveaway t-shirts draped on all the seats. Stephen A. Smith is milling around on the floor, whispering into a phone. Dozens of TV cameras, with their attendant lights, dot the sidelines. Hundreds of people are all about. A scattering of bench players are getting up shots
4:00 pm — “Crossed the (wrong) bridge.”
Oops.
Crossed the bridge. Ready for battle. #WeTheNorth | #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/WHDkqIXPe6
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) June 5, 20194:19 pm — “It’s a gametime decision.”
Steve Kerr is waiting to make the call.
“It's a game-time decision,” Kerr says when asked about the status of Klay Thompson.
“He's going to come in here and work with the training staff in a little bit, and we'll decide then.”
Thompson, unsurprisingly, is indefatigable in his attempts to get in the lineup.
“He's making a very strong case,” Kerr explains. “That's who Klay is. He wants to play no matter what. So we'll see what the trainers' assessment is. They looked at him this morning, and they will look at him again this evening.
But he's trying desperately to be out on the floor tonight, and we'll have to weigh all the factors and make the decision. We probably won't let him make the decision.
4:41 pm — “What’s up G?”
Dray with the blazer and jorts -- pic.twitter.com/6yB4iPpykA
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) June 5, 20195:55 pm — Metallica, as has become Finals custom, is playing the anthem.
Just after the heavy metal legends have finished the song and the crush around courtside is at his strongest tide, Rich Kleiman, Kevin Durant’s manager is making his way toward the floor, walking past the spot where Stephen Curry launches his famous tunnel shot.
6:07 pm — There’s still been no tip-off. Stephen A. Smith is shouting at someone, on his phone. The clamour is echoing out of the hallway and into the media room on the ground floor.
Two minutes prior, the tweet came down.
Klay Thompson (left hamstring strain) will not play.
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) June 6, 2019Heading into the night, Klay had been the only Warrior to play in all 101 games during the five-year Finals run. His stretch of 120 consecutive playoff games is over.
6:32 pm — The Warriors are down, 26-16. There’s 2:13 seconds left in the quarter when the Raptors call for a full timeout.
Steph, 5-for-10 from the field, has accounted for more than half the shots (18). He’s got 14 points. The rest of the team is 1-for-8.
By the close of the quarter, the Warriors are down, 36-29. For better or worse, it’s the Steph Show.
I don't know if it's a recipe for success, but Steph Curry assisted or scored all but one Warriors basket that quarter
— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) June 6, 20196:48 pm — Kerr has just called a timeout. With the makeshift second team of DeMarcus Cousins, Quinn Cook, Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston and Jonas Jerebko out on the floor, the lead has grown to 45-33.
On the possession before, Cousins attempted to thread a pass, through a congested lane, to Jerebko.
The Swede never saw it coming.
Jerebko looks lost.
— Bonta Hill (@BontaHill) June 6, 20197:03 pm — Royalty courtside.
Carters in 4. pic.twitter.com/HuiGdJHpP3
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 6, 2019Minutes later, Jay-Z, the new billionaire, and Beyonce are shown on the video screens that hang high above center court. Beyonce’s music is the track beneath.
7:11 pm — Steph drops a 30-footer, igniting Oracle Arena. Improbably, it’s 55-48, with 2:18 on the first-half clock.
On the next, possession down, he draws a foul, heading to the line. The MVP chants rain down for the second time on the night.
It’s been a Steph episode.
At the half, he has 25. Draymond Green is second on the team with seven.
7:41 pm — Creeping.
Steph gets the 23-footer, his fifth triple of the night. He’s up to 32 points. The Warriors are creeping. Raptors head coach Nick Nurse wants time. It’s 73-65.
7:59 pm — 12 minutes to go. A 13-point deficit.
With 12 minutes to go, Steph has scored 40 points. The rest of the team has 43.
— Karl Buscheck (@KarlBuscheck) June 6, 20198:05 pm — Kyle Lowry is heated.
Here's the fan that gave Kyle Lowry a bit of a push that had Lowry frustrated pic.twitter.com/A41HCGdMAY
— Board Man Gets Paid (@cjzero) June 6, 2019A few minutes later, the fan in the light blue shirt, who shoved the Raptor, is no longer in his seat
8:14 pm — 45 for No. 30.
Stephen Curry has a new playoff career high with 45 points (previously 44 points on May 6, 2013 at San Antonio).
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) June 6, 2019Klay, meanwhile, does not appear to be enjoying himself.
Klay itching to get in pic.twitter.com/xZGkdH3ASB
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 6, 20198:55 pm — Kerr finally arrives in the crowded press conference room, getting there is no easy task. The tunnel that snakes along the lower bowl is congested.
It’s a who’s who.
Steve Nash is outside the BMW Club. There’s Mistah Fab. Kevon Looney, in a suit and out for the season, leans up against a wall.
“They outplayed us,” Kerr said after the 123-109 loss. “They deserved it.
“I'm very proud of our effort, and now we just got to bounce back and hopefully get back here in here Friday night and hopefully get a little healthier and get some guys back, but we'll see how that goes.”
Curry, with his supporting cast dashed, went wild.
47 points.
8 rebounds.
7 assists.
“Steph was incredible,” Kerr marveled.
“The stuff he does is, he does things that honestly I don't think anybody has ever done before. The way he plays the game, the way he shoots it and the combination of his ball handling and shooting skills, it's incredible to watch. He was amazing.
Nick Nurse, Raptors head coach, will take it.
“My dad used to tell me the stats don't matter, just the final score.”
9:09 pm — It’s hot as hell in the press conference room. Draymond is carrying, rather than wearing, that salmon blazer.
Don’t tell him the Warriors sacrificed Game 3 for the with a look ahead to the series at large.
“We didn't sacrifice. You don't sacrifice a Finals game to be healthy for the next one, because anything can happen. But at the same time you do have to be smart. We would much rather have Klay for the rest of the series than putting him out there and losing him and then nothing. So no one sacrificed the game. “
A question about another of those injuries, Looney’s season-ending non-displaced first costal cartilage fracture, brings the line of the night.
“Not having anyone makes a difference because everyone — when you assemble a team, everyone brings something different.”
“But no one cares if guys are hurt. Everybody wants to see us lose. So I'm sure people are happy they're hurt. We just got to continue to battle and win the next game, go back to Toronto, win Game 5, come back to Oracle, win Game 6 and then celebrate.
“Fun times ahead.”
