Rockets HC sends stern warning to Warriors after Game 2 win

The Warriors have been a finesse team in the Steve Kerr era, but their identity changed somewhat when Jimmy Butler arrived. 

With Butler in the lineup, they haven't been afraid to muck up games and win low-scoring affairs, especially like the Game 1 win over the Rockets that Kerr described as a "game straight out of 1997."

Throughout a seven-game series, though, a team reveals its true nature. The Warriors are innately a jump-shooting team that prefers running up and down the court with a free-flowing offense. Unfortunately for them, the Rockets are dogged in their approach to slow the pace and get physical.

In Wednesday's Game 2 win, the Rockets allowed the Warriors to score only eight fast-break points and out-rebounded them by a margin of 47-33. The Warriors looked small and helpless against a Rockets squad that thrives when it imposes its will physically. 

The physicality of the contest seemingly perturbed the Warriors, with the game featuring several minor scuffles, including one between Draymond Green and Fred VanVleet late in the game, which led to Tari Eason throwing a towel at a member of the Warriors staff.  

All signs point to the chippiness continuing for the remainder of the series, which favors the Rockets, according to head coach Ime Udoka. 

"If it gets chippy, we've seen over the last two years that's worked in our favor for the most part, gets us amped up," Udoka said, via ESPN's Michael C. Wright. "But when you have a lead, [and you're] up 20, and things start to happen, you understand why. That's kind of the last resort by teams. You've got to keep your composure at that point and just stay calm."

Udoka encouraged the Warriors to participate in extracurricular activities, noting that his players "thrive" when pushed to their limits. 

The tied series shifts to San Francisco for Game 3 on Saturday night.