The Warriors' first-round NBA playoffs series against the Clippers was an unexpected battle.
It took six games for the reigning champions to take down the No. 8 seed Clippers, as they did so in convincing fashion on Friday night, 129-110. After the win, Warriors forward Draymond Green made sure he paid his respects to Clippers center Montrezl Harrell.
Even though he was in the middle of an interview with NBC Sports Bay Area reporter Kerith Burke, Green wouldn't let Harrell leave Staples Center without getting the respect he earned.
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"I wanted to talk to Montrezl," Green said to Burke. "He's a guy, man, I tell y'all all the time -- he got it out the mud. The way he played in this series, the way he's played all year, he's incredible, man. ... I got much respect for him, and I just wanted to tell him that."
Harrell scored 10 points and grabbed six rebounds in the Clippers' loss. In the six-game series, the former second-round draft pick averaged 14 points and 4.7 rebounds per contest.
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Golden State Warriors
The Warriors now face off with the Rockets in the Western Conference Semifinals. Game 1 is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. PT on Sunday at Oracle Arena.