The top storylines for the 2019 NBA Finals

Clearly, Toronto beating the Milwaukee Bucks in four straight outings didn't impress Las Vegas or those putting money on the Finals. Immediately after the Raptors booked a trip to the championship series, Jeff Sherman of SuperBook USA tweeted the Canadian club opened as huge betting underdogs, and, per Bleacher Report, Caesars Palace agreed with that assessment. Bulletin board material is a real thing for athletes of all levels, and Toronto head coach Nick Nurse won't have to search long and hard to find doubters and predictions of his team's impending doom. Then again, such alleged motivation didn't do much for the Portland Trail Blazers. 

Stephen Curry and the rest of the Warriors played like a "2K" cheat code for much of the romp over Portland, which makes it practically unfair they have two All-Stars, one of whom is also an MVP, rested and ready to return from injuries. As Logan Murdock of NBC Sports Bay Area wrote on May 23, DeMarcus Cousins (torn left quad) practiced the Thursday before Memorial Day weekend, and it's possible the 28-year-old center will be available to give Golden State minutes during Game 1. Even having Cousins on the bench at tipoff would be a gigantic boost for a side in need of additional options vs. Toronto's size and talent underneath.

What the Raptors are doing is literally historic. ESPN's Paul Hembekides ‏tweeted Toronto is the first team in 50 years to make the NBA Finals without a top-10 draft selection playing any minutes for the club during the playoffs. The Philadelphia 76ers pushed the Raptors to a seven-game series ended via a Kawhi Leonard walk-off bucket, and Toronto then had to recover from a 2-0 deficit to down the Bucks. As much as Toronto's bench improved throughout the series vs. Milwaukee (more on that later), that lineup has to be gassed at this point of the competition. Meanwhile, Golden State last played on May 20. 

One reason some, myself included, were convinced Portland would, at the very least, take a couple of games from the Warriors was because the Trail Blazers possessed more overall depth from top to bottom, on paper. Whoops. With Cousins and Kevin Durant sidelined, Kevon Looney became a key contributor off the bench, averaging 10.0 PPG and twice hitting double figures in scoring during the series. Jordan Bell proved he could start for a championship team in a closeout game and also average over 13 positive minutes a night. Guard Quinn Cook appeared in all four contests against Portland. Shaun Livingston is an efficient option, one who can enter the lineup if Andre Iguodala and others are banged up, during what may be his swan song. Add in Cousins and Durant, and Golden State isn't hurting for choices. 

Back on May 10, William Lou of Yahoo Sports referred to the Toronto reserves as "unplayable," and rightfully so, as the club's once dependable "bench mob" became an unreliable unit during the campaign. As analyst Kurt Helin pointed out, those individuals showed up when it mattered most against the Bucks. Per Justin Kubatko of StatMuse and Basketball-Reference, Fred VanVleet drained 14 of 17 three-pointers in the final three games of the conference finals, and as ESPN tweeted, he shot 68 percent from the field and averaged 16 points per game over those contests. He, Norman Powell and Serge Ibaka all hit double figures in the Game 4 win over Milwaukee, and VanVleet locating his Sixth Man of the Year form is critical if Toronto has any realistic hope of making this series more than a formality. 

Those looking for a hot take about the Warriors playing better without Kevin Durant (right calf) and not needing him can just move along. Durant, out for Game 1, owned the Cleveland Cavaliers in back-to-back Finals appearances, averaging over 35 points per game in 2017 and 28.8 PPG last year en route to earning a pair of Finals MVP honors. Golden State doesn't need Durant to beat Toronto, but one couldn't produce a better closer if he's capable of playing during the second half of the series. On May 28, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported Durant traveled with the team to Toronto, suggesting the 30-year-old may be closer to returning than some thought ahead of the holiday weekend. 

The Splash Brothers and Durant, assuming the latter actually plays, are going to get theirs, and Toronto will have to live with that reality. Keeping Draymond Green in check could ultimately determine whether or not Toronto takes part in more than five games against Golden State. Green, a proven big-game performer, averaged over 16 points in those four victories over Portland, and he's a defensive nuisance who can handle any assignment coach Steve Kerr hands to him. One envisions Green as the victor in one-on-one battles against Pascal Siakam, Serge Ibaka or Marc Gasol, and that's not accounting for his abilities to rattle opposing players and force them into committing costly mistakes while losing their heads. If Green plays as he did in the conference finals, he'll be a series MVP candidate. 

As of the typing of this sentence, no healthy individual is playing the sport better than Stephen Curry. Along with shooting over 42.5 percent from three-point range, Curry averaged 36.5 points per game without Durant on the floor in the victories over Portland. One thing missing from the three-time champion's resume is a definitive Finals moment — Iguodala and Durant earned MVP honors during Golden State's current run. The idea Curry somehow wouldn't be able to take a game over with his shooting if Toronto also had to concentrate on stopping or limiting a healthy Durant is downright ridiculous. Maybe the biggest worry for the Warriors is Curry will have cooled during the long break. 

If the Raptors lose either of their first two home games, you can close the curtain on the Finals. Those who attended Game 6 of the 2016 NBA Finals between the Warriors and Cavaliers can attest to the atmosphere and noise inside Quicken Loans Arena and how those Cleveland fans would not let LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and the Cavs get eliminated at home. Toronto is a basketball town and will be more so than ever before on May 30, and those Scotiabank Arena crowds inside and outside of the venue will have ample energy to create a unique and special home-court advantage. 

Unless you elect to completely ignore rumors about offseason stories, you know all about the forecasts of Golden State's inevitable demise. Kevin Durant continues to be linked with the Big Apple on a daily basis. Klay Thompson could also leave the Bay Area via free agency in search of a career-high payday. The previously mentioned Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston could retire as champions. DeMarcus Cousins can pick where he'll play home games next season come July. The Chicago Bulls of the 1990s, Peyton Manning and David Robinson all exited stages on top of their professions. Golden State can do the same if the squad is, in fact, on the final notes of its last dance. 

The Cavaliers beat the Warriors in 2016 because both Kyrie Irving and LeBron James scored 41 points in Game 5, and the two also delivered magical moments in the last minutes of Game 7. Kawhi Leonard isn't James and he doesn't have an Irving, and being merely the best two-way player on the court won't be good enough for the Raptors to pull this off. Leonard posted over 30 points against a stellar Milwaukee defense on four occasions, and there's no reason to believe he can't do so when facing difficult matchups against Iguodala or Green. Toronto dropped the first two of those games, though, a reminder that one person alone can't and won't beat Golden State. 

The 2018-19 Warriors are a living reminder that, minus injuries that impact teams through June, the NBA regular season is largely meaningless. Great teams can and do flip the figurative switch. Remember that Golden State appeared vulnerable on the night of May 10 before dumping Portland in four contests. While every ESPN analyst predicted Golden State's series win, none called the sweep ahead of time. Somehow, the best team of the decade is exceeding expectations and peaking without Durant. The Warriors would be massive favorites against any team in the league. 

Steve Kerr knows the looks and feels of a dynastic run coming to an end. After all, he was part of the Chicago Bulls team that won the 1998 NBA Finals, a sixth title that decade, before Michael Jordan and others went their separate ways. He's the perfect head coach to match wits with Nick Nurse, prevent his squad from celebrating a championship it hasn't yet earned and keep all eyes focused on the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy rather than on potential summer moves and new homes. 

Those predicting a Toronto upset are probably voting with their hearts more than their heads. Any existing cracks in the Golden State foundation were patched ahead of the sweep over the Trail Blazers. Durant may remain a spectator in June if only because the Warriors wrap things up before he's ready to return to meaningful action. 

The pick is Golden State in five because Toronto takes one on its own court.