Warriors complete Game 7 comeback over Thunder to reach NBA Finals

What a series! Stephen Curry and the Warriors beat the Thunder to become the 10th team to come back from a 3–1 playoff deficit. The NBA Finals are next. Will they repeat as champs?

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Those on the losing side of Golden State’s 85 wins this season are familiar with the same crooked reality. The basic odds of basketball never seem to apply to the Warriors in the same way they do everyone else. Others are doomed when they stop moving the ball and force up difficult, contested shots. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are so skilled shooting that in many cases they’re rewarded for it. Risky passes inevitably get most NBA teams into trouble, yet Golden State manages to redeem many of its near-turnovers for back-breaking points. No matter how the Warriors might struggle, there isn’t a run, advantage, or series deficit they cannot erase. Where any other basketball team would regress to the mean, the defending champs seem only to rise to the occasion.

Case in point: Game 7 of the Western Conference finals, in which the Warriors claimed a decisive 96–88 win over both the Thunder and any reasonable sense of probability.

Oklahoma City was made to face that truth in the most excruciating way possible. After taking a 3–1 series lead, each of the Thunder’s three straight losses to end their season were increasingly painful. A course-correcting Game 5 for the Warriors was competitive but somewhat expected. A tense, haunting letdown in Game 6 surrendered the opportunity for Oklahoma City to finish the series at home. Monday’s Game 7 then featured the Warriors at their most painfully inevitable, complete with Curry (36 points, 7-of-12 three-pointers, eight assists) bombing his way into the lead on jumpers that most in the league wouldn’t dare attempt. The Thunder—a wonderful, spirited team playing the best basketball of its season—were buried alive.

• MORE NBA:Curry sends Warriors to Finals | Full NBA Finals schedule

The shame in that cannot be lost in the fanfare of Golden State’s comeback nor the inevitable rush to document Oklahoma City’s failings. Mistakes were made. Old habits resurfaced at inopportune times. Yet this was only a series at all because the Thunder summoned a defensive focus and intensity well beyond their regular season best. This series remains a collection of some the best coverage ever played against the Warriors, no matter the result. Kevin Durant, Andre Roberson and Steven Adams were exceptional. Serge Ibaka and Dion Waiters acquitted themselves well, even to situations well out of their comfort zones. Russell Westbrook has never been quite so effective in coverage overall, even as his defense grew looser and the series unfolded.

Photos of the 10 teams to come back from a 3–1 playoff deficit in NBA history

NBA Playoff 3-1 Comebacks

2016 NBA Finals — Cleveland Cavaliers over Golden State Warriors

Greg Nelson

It may have been the 11th 3-1 series comeback in NBA playoff history, but the Cavaliers became the first team to rally from a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals after beating the defending champion Golden State Warriors 93-89. Playing his sixth straight finals, LeBron James almost single-handedly carried the Cleveland back into this series and finished with 27 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds as the Cavs gave their city its first major sports winner since the Browns won the NFL title in 1964. He also had three blocked shots, including a key one of Andre Iguodala on a fast break in the final minutes.

2016 Western Conference Finals — Golden State Warriors over Oklahoma City Thunder

Noah Graham/NBAE/Getty Images

The Golden State Warriors, fresh off their record 73-win season, rallied to topple Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in a 96–88 Game 7 classic. Led by their backcourt duo Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, the Warriors can win their third-ever NBA title.

2015 Western Conference Semifinals — Houston Rockets over Los Angeles Clippers

Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images

Houston overcame a 19-point third-quarter deficit in Game 6, and James Harden scored 31 points in the Rockets' 113-100 Game 7 victory over the Clippers, sending them to the conference finals for the first time since 1997.

2006 Western Conference Quarterfinals — Phoenix Suns over Los Angeles Lakers

John W. McDonough

The Suns went from the brink to a blowout, from the edge of elimination to one of the most impressive turnarounds in NBA playoff history. Leandro Barbosa led the way in Game 7, scoring 26 points on 10-of-12 shooting in a 121-90 laugher.

2003 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals — Detroit Pistons over Orlando Magic

Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images

Tayshaun Prince — a seldom-used rookie who average just 10 minutes during the regular season and sat out 40 games — made Tracy McGrady's life difficult through most of the series. Prince had a career-high 20 points while harassing McGrady defensively as Detroit defeated Orlando decisively in Game 7, 108-93.

1997 Eastern Conference Semifinals — Miami Heat over New York Knicks

Rick Bowmer/AP

Miami won Game 5 96–81, which was highlighted by a brawl that started when P.J. Brown objected to Charlie Ward's attempt to gain position for a rebound. During the brawl, Patrick Ewing, Allan Houston, Larry Johnson and John Starks left the bench; the league punished them for this by handing out 1-game suspensions spread out over the series' final 2 games. Shorthanded by the suspensions, the Knicks lost Games 6 and 7, 95–90 and 101–90 respectively.

1995 Western Conference Semifinals — Houston Rockets over Phoenix Suns

David Phillip/AP

Mario Elie nailed a go-ahead three-pointer from the corner with 7.1 seconds left, known as the "Kiss of Death," as the Rockets won Game 7 115-114 at Phoenix, en route to claiming a second straight NBA title.

1981 Eastern Conference Finals — Boston Celtics over Philadelphia 76ers

Paul Kennedy

A tight series between two 62-win teams fittingly went down to the wire. Larry Bird hit a go-ahead bank shot in the final minute as the Celtics rallied from a six-point deficit in the final 4:30 to beat Philadelphia 91-90 in Game 7.

1979 Eastern Conference Finals — Washington Bullets over San Antonio Spurs

Focus on Sport/Getty Images

Elvin Hayes averaged 25 points in Games 5-7, and the Spurs suffered a devastating 107-105 loss to the Bullets in the final game of the series. San Antonio was called for seven fouls in the final 3:39 and Washington went on a 10-2 run in the final two minutes.

1970 Western Division Finals — Los Angeles Lakers over Phoenix Suns

Harold Filan/AP

The Lakers rallied to win the final three games by double digits on the backs of Elgin Baylor, Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain.

1968 Eastern Division Finals — Boston Celtics over Philadelphia 76ers

Walter Iooss Jr

"Mr. Clutch" Sam Jones led the Celtics with 22 points in Game 7 as Boston became the first team in NBA history to comeback from a 3-1 series deficit, defeating the defending champion 76ers.

Some better breaks or better decisions in Games 6 and 7 could have changed the series. Yet even running back those counterfactuals shortchanges the Warriors’ apparent relationship with destiny. It feels as if any play that Oklahoma City could have saved would only have been balanced out by Golden State in kind. Something profound was in play. Classify it however you’d like, but the distinction between these two teams in terms of shot-making, defensive poise and overall presence was practically slim and completely unmistakable. That Durant (27 points on 19 shots, seven rebounds) willed through enough baskets to cut the deficit to four points in the final two minutes was a detail lost in the deluge. 

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It didn’t matter that Durant pulled the Thunder within striking distance despite Andre Iguodala’s frustrating defense, just as it didn’t matter that Oklahoma City had dominated the offensive glass or generally maintained a healthy offense. That futility came from Curry hitting the crazy, step-back threes he had missed (or refused to attempt) all series and Thompson again shooting over the top of quality contests. The shots went in, and as is so often the case with this team, accepted basketball logic didn’t have a thing to do with it.