SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Golden State Warriors could advance to their third straight NBA Finals tonight. They hold a 3-0 lead over the San Antonio Spurs in their best-of-seven Western Conference final.
The Spurs are without injured stars Tony Parker and Kawhi (kuh-WY’) Leonard.
With a win, the Warriors also would become the first team to start a postseason 12-0.
No NBA team has rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff.
Leonard to miss Game 4 with Spurs on brink of elimination
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Spurs leading scorer Kawhi Leonard will not play Game 4 against the Golden State Warriors with San Antonio on the brink of elimination.
Golden State leads the Western Conference finals 3-0 and has a chance to become the first team in league history to open the playoffs 12-0.
An MVP finalist, Leonard has not played since severely aggravating a sprained left ankle during the third quarter of Game 1 against the Warriors. He initially sprained the ankle in Game 5 of the conference semifinals against Houston.
Golden State has outscored San Antonio by 73 points since Leonard exited Game 1 with 7:52 remaining in the third quarter with the Spurs leading 78-55.
Spurs forward David Lee, who suffered a torn left patellar tendon in Game 3, will also sit out Game 4.
Golden State center Zaza Pachulia will miss his second straight game with a bruised right heel. Warriors coach Mike Brown said Pachulia’s absence was not determined by the ire Spurs fans have for the 6-foot-11 forward.
San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich instructs his players
during the first half in Game 3 of the NBA basketball Western
Conference finals on Saturday, May 20, 2017, in San Antonio. (AP
Photo/Ronald Cortes)
Pachulia and his family have received death threats from fans who blame him for Leonard’s absence after his controversial close-out that San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich called “dangerous” and “unsportsmanlike.”
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