Ole!

Dub Nation was a little nervous ahead of this game when we learned that Steph Curry, who is nursing a sore ankle and foot, would not be playing. Steph is our security blanket, our good luck charm, the target of our whispered prayers. Some of us lay in bed at night counting Curry threes, and we never run out before we fall asleep.

Without him the Warriors are still a very, very good basketball team; they just lack that element of the supernatural that he brings, the one that makes opposing defenses scramble around like madmen and creates easy shots for everyone else. So last night, they had to work harder for everything, which is probably good for them. Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, and Shaun Livingston all made big contributions, with Draymond Green his usual stalwart self, and Mo Buckets and the Brazilian Blur providing some scoring punch.

On the other side, James Harden was in top foul-drawing form, going to the line 15 times on some highly questionable calls, including a remarkable number of three-shot fouls. Then again, Klay shot 16 free throws, so maybe I can’t complain too much; and fortunately Harden is not interested in playing defense, so he gave some of those points right back on the other end.

The series is 2–0 now, with Game 3 in Houston on Thursday. Hopefully Steph will be back for that one, but even if he’s not, I think everything is going to be OK.