The Toronto Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors, 114-110, in a nail-biter Game 6 to win the NBA championship Thursday night at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.
The Warriors — and fans — were hoping for a third championship in a row before the franchise moves to the Chase Center in San Francisco for the start of the 2019-2020 season.
It was the first NBA win for the Raptors — and the first time that a team outside the U.S. has taken home the NBA trophy.
Raptors’ star Kyle Lowry racked up 11 of his 29 game points in the first minutes of the contest, and Toronto built a quick nine-point lead in the first quarter. But it never went that smoothly again, and the game turned into a minute-to-minute slugfest with the undermanned Warriors battling every point.
Sorely missed was Golden State’s superstar forward, Kevin Durant, who was recovering from surgery on his Achilles tendon Wednesday. Warriors guard Klay Thompson was out for the fourth quarter after he injured his knee. He had made 28 points on 12 shots when he landed badly and was helped to the locker room in the third quarter. But he returned to make two free throws for a game high of 30 points.
Toronto’s Pascal Siakam racked up 26 points, and Fred VanVleet made five of Toronto’s 13 three-pointers to finish with 22 points. Kawhi Leonard, who scored 22 points and made six rebounds, grabbed the NBA Finals’ Most Valuable Player Award.