It made me nervous--how positive the pundits were before the first round series started that Golden State would prevail, perhaps easily. The Warriors themselves were said to be very confident.
One way to look at the Sacramento King's first game victory is that if they were to win any game it would be this one--their first one since (if I'm not mistaken) Shaq was playing against them. The entire city seemed to be cheering them on. Another way is to suggest that they needed to play almost a perfect game, and with a lot of luck (and a lot of calls going their way), to beat the Warriors, almost at full strength. Wiggins was back but was gassed enough at the end to miss a wide open 3 that might have been the winning shot. The Warriors did not lose from overconfidence. Maybe from fouling too much.
After the game, the Warriors still seemed confident. Game 2 is not an absolute must win, but pretty close. The game after a defeat is where you'd expect championship pedigree and playoff experience to show.
But the game 1 winner usually has an outsized advantage. The Kings now know they can in fact beat the defending champs in a playoff game. What might have been bravado before the game is confidence after it. Now it's up to the Dubs to prove that they aren't just a little short of playoff caliber this year.
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