After a three-year hiatus, the Warriors are back in the NBA Finals. (1:45)
The Golden State Warriors have time as they head into the NBA Finals.
The Warriors will have just one week of rest before Game 1 of the Finals, which tips off Thursday night, after wrapping up their Western Conference finals series against the Dallas Mavericks in five games.
The Warriors gave their players two days off, which is almost unheard of in the playoffs or regular season. We will not have a formal practice until tomorrow. It will be the first day we build on our opponent. If you can build a little break, it is very meaningful because it is almost a two-month journey filled with stress and fatigue.
After taking Friday and Saturday off, the Warriors met at Chase Center on Sunday for treatment and light workouts. They will hold regular practices on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
Having two days off and a week between when we play allows everyone to get their mind right, focus and get the body back where they want it to be.
Some of the negatives that come with a long layoff are game rhythm, game shape, and so on. You have to make sure you do all the things you normally do to stay sharp.
The longer break is giving the injured players a chance to get back on the court. The Western Conference finals were missed by three key players: Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr. and Andre Iguodala.
The team said Sunday that they are progressing nicely, and that they will be integrated into practices this week. The Warriors will get a better idea of their availability as they rejoin group activity.
Golden State will have home-court advantage even if the Warriors face either the Celtics or Heat. The Warriors have a better record than the Celtics and the same record as the Heat, but they won both of their regular-season games against Miami. The Celtics and the Heat will play Game 7 of the East finals on Sunday.
As soon as the Warriors beat the Heat in March, Kerr said he knew his team had home court against any team in the Eastern Conference. It was just an added bonus for down the line, not something they were necessarily looking for at that moment.
The last few weeks of the season we were struggling to the finish line with the injuries to Draymond Green and Stephen Curry and we had a couple of tough stretches there. Kerr said that they had put a bunch of wins in the bank early that gave them a cushion.
The Warriors don't have to think about getting on a plane for another week because of home court. Game 3 is on June 8.
Kerr said that being in their beds for 11 days is very helpful.
Being able to sleep in your own bed, prepare at home, and play at home is always special. It is better to get the jitters out at home when the crowd is cheering for you.
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