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Western Conference finals more than Stephen Curry vs. James Harden

西區冠軍賽, 不僅僅是Curry跟Harden之間的對決 http://tinyurl.com/myysdtg

In the headlines, this is the MVP face-off: Stephen Curry vs. James Harden,
the Golden State Warriors' winner of the Maurice Podoloff trophy and the
Houston Rockets star who saw himself as more deserving.

各大頭條紛紛寫著"MVP大對決 - 咖哩飯vs滷肉飯, 今晚你想吃哪道?"
勇士這邊是剛拿下本季MVP獎座的Curry, 火箭這邊的Harden則更覺得自己才是正港MVP!

Or, more accurately, the Western Conference finals that start Tuesday at
Oracle Arena are all about the Curry-Harden cook-off. Only one Top Chef can
move on from here.

更精確的說, 明天在勇士主場開始的西冠爭霸, 整個就是場料理東西軍, 只有最頂尖的
主廚才能夠出線晉級總冠軍賽

Curry earned the nickname "Chef Curry" this season when the video of he and
his wife, Ayesha, doing a lip-syncing spoof of Drake's 0 to 100 hit — "Chef
Curry with the pot," the line goes — went viral. Then Harden concocted his
own culinary imagery on the court, using his fingers as the imaginary spoon
inside the cup of his hot hand whenever he really got cooking.

江湖人送"主廚Curry"的由來 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjU7BYcJwIw
但料理界最夯的還是鬍子主廚 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uliPqhlHtIg
建議看Harden影片時自行配上台詞：裁判，我的醬汁呢？

The truth about this series, though, is that they are merely a side dish.

但這次的西冠, 兩位主廚卻僅僅只是配菜而已

If Curry and Harden were reminded of anything on their respective paths to
this point, it's that one-man bands don't play for long in the playoffs. It's
all about depth, collective will and intangibles like chemistry, with star
power often dimmed when role players and coaches don't come through in the
clutch. And rest assured, Curry and Harden know that as well as anyone.



After Curry struggled mightily in Games 2 and 3 of the West semifinals
against the Memphis Grizzlies, his much-improved offense was merely one of
the many reasons the Warriors turned the tide of that series and won in six
games. More than anything, it was the Warriors' defense playing up to its
league-best standards that got the job done.



After allowing 101.1 points per 100 possessions in their two losses, they
allowed just 91.5 points per 100 in the final three games while holding the
Grizzlies to 38.2% shooting. That's a group effort, with Curry, Klay
Thompson, Harrison Barnes, Andre Iguodala and others working on the wings and
Andrew Bogut and Draymond Green dominating down low.

二三場的連兩敗, 勇士讓灰熊每100次攻勢能拿下101.1分
但四五六場拿出好防守後, 灰熊只能在100次攻勢中拿下91.5分, 38.2%命中率
這完全就是團隊全體的努力啊!

Harden, meanwhile, wasn't on the floor when the Rockets were saving their
season in Game 6 against the Los Angeles Clippers in their semifinal. That
improbable 19-point, fourth-quarter comeback — one that took place mostly
with Dwight Howard, Josh Smith, Trevor Ariza, Jason Terry and Corey Brewer
pulling it off — led to the Game 7 win where Harden was back to his
MVP-caliber ways.



Yet even with Harden's 31-point, eight-assist, seven-rebound, three-steal
outing, and with Howard, Ariza and Smith combining for 52 points, it was the
unexpected heroics of point guard Pablo Prigioni that put their effort over
the top. The 38-year-old, who is in just his third NBA season, had three key
steals, catching Blake Griffin and Chris Paul napping time and again, and hit
a well-timed three-pointer midway through the third quarter to push the
Rockets' eight-point lead back to 11.



It's all-hands-on-deck time, in other words, unless you want to go fishing.

這就是個得全員出動的時刻, 不然你還是放暑假回家釣魚去好了

"We don't get to this (point) if not for Trev, Brew, Josh, Dwight, and Jet,"
Rockets coach Kevin McHale said on Sunday while acknowledging their part in
the Game 6 finish that included a 40-15 Rockets run. "We don't even get to
today. ... Everybody that stepped on the floor really contributed."



But the trouble for Houston is that no team is as deep, or as healthy, as the
Warriors. Save for a possible Game 1 absence from reserve big man Marreese
Speights (right calf), Golden State is good to go now like they have been
almost all season long. The Rockets have gotten this far despite being
without two starters who suffered injuries that were deemed season-ending
(point guard Patrick Beverley and forward Donatas Motiejunas).

但現在對火箭來說最大的問題, 就是沒有人能比勇士的陣容深度更深, 更健康.
好想對還沒康復的天空貝跟D-Mo來個奪情起復喔....(淚)

What's more, the next time the Rockets beat the Warriors this season will be
the first. They were 0-4 against Golden State during the regular season,
losing by an average of 15.3 points and ensuring that they'll be widely
considered the underdogs here. Howard was injured and didn't play in the
first two games, but he was in for the last two.

此外, 這季常規賽火箭對戰勇士是可憐的0-4被橫掃, 場均輸15.3分, 大家都不看好
雖然可以說前兩戰之所以會輸是沒有草莓獸的關係, 但後兩敗有草莓獸還是輸啊 (淚)

Curry vs. Harden will be good hoops theatre, especially considering both
players are back to their respective top forms. Curry leads all remaining
players in postseason scoring at 28.2 points per game, with only the New
Orleans Pelicans' Anthony Davis having scored at a higher clip (31.5 points
per game in the first-round sweep by the Warriors). The three-point threat
that is such a remarkable part of his game is there as always, too, as Curry
— just 10 games in, mind you — is just 12 threes away from Reggie Miller's
all-time mark in a postseason that was set in 2000 (in 23 games).

名廚咖哩跟鬍子主廚的對決會是個好戲碼, 特別是他們兩位今年都打出頂級身手.


Harden is right behind Curry in the postseason scoring ranks (26.7 points per
game), and they both continue to showcase an all-around game that has
everything to do with their teams' success (6.8 assists and 5.8 rebounds per
game for Curry; 8.0 assists and 4.8 rebounds per for Harden). Both players
would likely agree that they need to take better care of the ball (four
turnovers per game for Curry, 4.5 per for Harden).



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