After sweeping the Portland Trail Blazers in the Western Conference Finals, the Golden State Warriors are off to their fifth-straight NBA Finals appearance. They have won three of the previous four championships and are looking to win a third-straight title. It's clear that the Warriors will be the favorites heading into the Finals even if they have to start the series on the road in either Milwaukee or Toronto. The Warriors success is coming in light of the fact that Kevin Durant is out with a right calf injury. Before each game, Durant is a part of their pre-game ritual where he stands in the middle of the huddle.
Without Durant in the lineup, the Warriors have had to improvise and on Monday, the team used Blazers reporter from the Oregonian, Geoffrey C. Arnold. The reporter seemed to be surprised by Steph Curry's insistence that he join them, although as it turned out, he was a good luck charm.
After the game, Arnold attempted to ask Draymond Green about the game and that's when Green pointed out just how much Arnold helped them win. In fact, Green even offered to fly Arnold out for the Finals.
“Hey Raymond, I gotta buy his flight to the Finals,” Green said according to Sports Illustrated. “I ain’t paying for your hotel room though.”
Arnold seemed to be fine with the terms so if Durant isn't back in time for the Finals, we know who will be in that huddle come May 30th.
