Klay Thompson, Warriors rout Rockets to advance to second round

OAKLAND – The sign was clearly made hours, if not days, in advance.

Midway up the lower concourse at Oracle Arena, where the letters in so many vibrant colors could be seen next to the tropical birds on the posterboard, the middle-aged man in the backwards baseball cap and the “73” t-shirt held it up with effusing pride as his undermanned Golden State Warriors surged into the second round on Wednesday.

“Rockets ‘R’ Headed to Cancun,” it read.

And the Warriors, even without reigning MVP Stephen Curry, may still be headed toward a title defense.

Their 114-81 win over Houston in Game 5 was more than just a closeout game. It was an awakening, a statement from the NBA’s mountaintop that the reigning champions clearly have enough championship spirit to bridge this Curry-less gap. At this rate, with these kinds of performances (54% shooting, 27 points from Klay Thompson), the Clippers or the Blazers would be the underdogs in the Western Conference Semifinals to come.

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Even the Joe Blows in the stands saw this coming, though, just as they could have told you that these dysfunctional Rockets wouldn’t put up a fight. The anti-Houston evidence was piling up even before Sunday’s second-half folding act, when the Rockets were blown away after Curry went out with a sprained right knee in Game 4, but never had their disjointed ways been on such pathetic display.

Until this game, that is.

Amid this sea of yellow and blue cotton, with the Warriors faithful cheering at concrete-splitting decibels, the two most important Warriors who remain healthy sparked the perfect kind of start. A three from Thompson, then another from Green, and the Rockets seemed to already be reaching for their tent bags.

In the first quarter that Golden State led 37-20, the Rockets not named James Harden missed all 15 of their shots. Harden, who had so valiantly led Houston to the No. 2 seed and a Western Conference Finals appearance last season, hit six of eight shots in a quarter that was as lonely as you’ll ever find for a star player.

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Thompson and Curry’s replacement, veteran Shaun Livingston, combined for 21 points in the period. More importantly, the added length that comes with the 6-foot-7 Livingston meant Golden State’s defense was even better than normal: on the night, they held Houston to 32% shooting from the field.
The lead grew to 59-37 at halftime, then 89-59 after three quarters. The Washington Generals tweets started popping up right around there somewhere.

And Curry, who sat on the Warriors bench in a tan sports coat, white shirt, and black pants, showcased quite the emotional swing for his team’s home fans: from tears and endless frustration at the Toyota Center on Sunday to a smile so big throughout Game 5 that you’d swear he just won a new car.

With the Blazers taking a 3-2 lead in their series on Wednesday and the surreal hardships facing the Chris Paul/Blake Griffin-less Clippers, it’s entirely reasonable to believe that these Warriors will be able to hold the fort down until Curry returns. The uncertain nature of a Grade 1 MCL sprain means his timetable is rough – 10-12 days, two weeks, three weeks? – but it’s clear that there is still enough talent and chemistry here to survive for quite some time.

As for the Rockets, they have no shortage of questions to answer whenever they get back from Cancun.

Will Dwight Howard be back? Most likely not, as the Rockets center has said he plans to decline the player option in his contract in order to become a free agent. It has been quite some time since a supposed one-two punch failed so miserably like this Howard-Harden duo, and the lack of synergy between them – not to mention Howard’s nearly-nonexistent role in the offense – means he will look for greener pastures.

Will J.B. Bickerstaff be back? Most likely not, even though he did an admirable job trying to keep the Rockets’ wreckage contained. Houston is expected to conduct a coaching search, with Bickerstaff being considered but bigger-name candidates, like Jeff Van Gundy, leading the way.