Asked seemingly in jest if this trip to Houston compared to those in the past for the NBA playoffs, Stephen Curry answered earnestly while assessing the relative merits of the NBA Cup.
"Not really," the Golden State Warriors star said Sunday after a victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves at Chase Center. "But there's still an appreciation for a moment - like a buildup to a game."
Whether or not it's in the Western Conference Finals.
Golden State heads to Houston for NBA Cup quarterfinal play Wednesday night at the Toyota Center, the venue where it triumphed en route to the NBA Finals in 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019. Should the Warriors win, they'll travel to Las Vegas for semifinal play Saturday at T-Mobile Arena. To the winning franchise goes the NBA Cup, to the winning players goes a half-million dollars apiece. The championship game is Tuesday night but doesn't count toward the NBA's regular-season standings.
"We all want to get to Vegas, for sure," Curry added. "We're going to give everything we got to it. But a little different context than the playoffs."
The Warriors have sustained their hold over Houston beyond the height of their heyday of winning four championships in eight seasons.
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"There's a mutual respect for the battles we had," Golden State's Draymond Green said after beating the Rockets late last season. "When it's all said and done, those are the things you're going to remember the most. ... Each and every time, they brought out the best in us."
That said, the Warriors haven't lost a game to the Rockets since Feb. 20, 2020, with a 15-game win streak against them. The final score of their last loss to Houston was 135-105. The leading scorer was James Harden (29 points, 10 assists), who has since played for three other NBA teams - twice this season leading the Los Angeles Clippers to victories over the Warriors. Harden was traded in 2020-21 after picking-and-rolling the Rockets as far as he could.
The Warriors' current streak would begin Mar. 17, 2021, in conjunction with Houston's since completed reboot.
"The NBA is weird like that," head coach Steve Kerr said, asked last week about the streak. "It doesn't feel to me like we've dominated Houston," he said, noting its rebuild, "I think it's more random than anything."
In the last four-plus seasons, as the Warriors stocked up wins, the Rockets stocked up draft picks and promising players: big man Alperen Sengun (2021), forwards and wings Jalen Green (2021), Jabari Smith Jr. (2022), Tari Eason (2022) and Amen Thompson (2023), and point guard Reed Sheppard (2024). Experienced additions include point guard Fred VanVleet (2023), swingman Dillon Brooks (2023) and big man Steven Adams (2024).
Houston's current collective is coached by Ime Udoka and positioned third in the Western Conference.
"I feel like Ime is the right coach for this group," Kerr said last week following his team's 99-93 victory for Golden State's 15th consecutive win over the Rockets. "He's a defensive-minded guy. ... And that's the identity of the team and they make a lot of sense."
After Udoka's hiring a year ago in April - he'd coached the Boston Celtics to the NBA Finals in 2022 opposite the Warriors - the Rockets have developed a speedy, versatile outfit with an active, physical pressuring defense (ranking second in defensive rating, just 105.4 points per 100 possessions) and pace they blend around Sengun (18.6 points, 10.6 rebounds, 5.3 assists).
Twice this season, Houston was within six points of snapping its losing streak to Golden State: The Warriors won 127-121 in overtime without Curry on Nov. 2 at Toyota Center, and again last Thursday without Curry and Green at Chase Center.
On to the quarterfinals - and back to Houston for an elimination basketball game - they go.
"We're excited," Kerr said. "We're disappointed we lost (last week in group play) to Denver, forcing us to go on the road. But we go to Houston and see what we can do."
Streak feats: Golden State's average margin of victory: 12.7 points. ... Ten of their 15 wins have been by 11 points or more. ... Leading scorers: Curry (eight times), Klay Thompson (three times, once with Curry), Jordan Poole (twice), Andrew Wiggins, Buddy Hield, Jonathan Kuminga. ... 8-0 at Toyota Center, 7-0 at Chase Center.
Reach Sam Gordon: Sam.Gordon@sfchronicle.com
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This story was originally published December 10, 2024, 7:07 PM.