Allen Kee / ESPN Images(BROOKLYN, N.Y.) — The Golden State Warriors clinched a playoff berth with a 112-95 victory. The team was without Kevin Durant, who was nursing a hand injury, though he is not expected to miss an extended period of time.
With the win, the Warriors secured their fifth straight playoff berth. The five-year postseason run is the franchise’s second longest stretch. They made the playoffs for six straight seasons from 1946 to 1952.
According to ESPN, the Warriors are the first team to clinch a playoff spot this early on the calendar since the 1985-86 Boston Celtics, who also clinched on February 25th. That Celtics team went on to win the NBA Championship.
Stephen Curry led all scorers in the game with 27 points. Afterwards he told reporters he cherishes their playoff berth because he remembers when the franchise consistently missed the postseason. Curry did not appear in an NBA playoff game until his fourth year in the league.
The team is moving past last year’s NBA Finals loss to the Cavaliers. They set an NBA-record by winning 73 regular season games and held a 3-1 lead in the Finals, but weren’t able to secure their second championship in as many seasons.
Golden State’s already lost as many regular season games as they did last year, but they hold the NBA’s best record and a comfortable lead in the Western Conference.
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