Toronto Raptors Roundtable: NBA Finals keys to the series, predictions, and more

What is one area where the Raptors can look to exploit the Warriors?

Mark Birdsell:

The Warriors are a top-heavy team. The combined salaries of Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andre Iguodala are just under $120 million, as a result, the Warriors don’t have much of a bench.

With Durant out, Curry, Thompson, and Green have had to play heavy minutes. The Raptors bench has disappeared at times during the playoffs, but they are a deeper team and need to take advantage of that fact.

Mike Bossetti:

Particularly with Durant out, the Warriors don’t really have much shooting outside of Steph and Klay.

Looney is a non-threat, Draymond shot below 29-percent from deep, and Iguodala made under 50 threes all season. The team has tons of shooting at the top of the roster, but very little throughout the rest.

The Raptors are so great at swarming the basket and recovering out to the perimeter; with the Warriors lack of perimeter shooting, that should be even easier.

Go Paolo:

By stopping Steph Curry. If the Warriors can’t run their offense through Curry, the Raptors have a significant advantage. But if they can’t find a way to put a lid on him, this will be a short series.

The Raptors will try switching against him, trapping him, and giving him unusual matchups. Will it work? It’s worth a shot.

William Ricks:

The Raptors can exploit the Warriors in the paint. That has been their one flaw that opponents have used this season to their advantage. Marc Gasol got in a groove late last series, Pascal Siakam is due for a breakout game. If Pascal can use his post moves to cause havoc in the paint, it can cause headaches for Golden State defensively.