Warriors vs. Clippers Game 1 Watch Guide: Lineups, injuries, player usage

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OAKLAND -- After 82 games of intrigue, the Warriors will embark on their fifth postseason run under Steve Kerr on Saturday night in Game 1 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series against the Clippers. 

Coverage on NBC Sports Bay Area begins at 3:30 p.m. with Warriors Outsiders, followed by Warriors Pregame Live at 4 and the scheduled 5:10 p.m. tip-off on ABC.

[RELATED: How to watch Warriors-Clippers]

These teams have a history, most notably their 2014 Western Conference first-round series, an epic battle the Clippers ultimately won in seven games. 

This time, the Warriors are overwhelming favorites and, with a chance to make this a short series, shouldn't mess around. 

Here's everything you need to know heading into Game 1.

PROJECTED STARTERS

Warriors
F Kevin Durant 
F Draymond Green
C DeMarcus Cousins
G Klay Thompson
G Stephen Curry

Clippers 
F Danilo Gallinari 
C Ivica Zubac
G Patrick Beverley
G Landry Shamet
G Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 

INJURY REPORT

Warriors
Damian Jones (pectoral surgery) is out

Clippers
None

ROTATION OUTLOOK

Warriors
Golden State enters Game 1 having won eight of their last 10 games, including a 131-104 blowout win over LA last week. 

Over the stretch, Durant has been a model of efficiency, averaging 18.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 7.1 assists on 59.8 percent shooting. 

Cousins will make his postseason debut against Saturday afternoon, against a Clippers team that will almost certainly give him every opportunity to shoot the 3-ball, which he struggled to make in last week's matchup. 

Over the years, the Warriors have been dominant in Game 1s, posting a 15-1 record under Steve Kerr. 

Clippers
While Golden State comes into the postseason hot, the Clippers have limped into the final stretch. Entering Game 1, they have lost four of their last seven games, three of those losses coming without the services of Beverley, who is dealing with a bad hip. 

Still, LA enters Saturday's matchup with a superior bench, led by Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell, averaging a league-high 52.3 points per game. 

The Clippers will need more than an elite second unit to overcome the Warriors, who have beaten LA by an average of 15.6 points per game. 

Officials
Ed Malloy (#14), Courtney Kirkland (#61), Mark Lindsay (#29), Mitchell Ervin (#27)

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