The NBA Finals is about superstars, but often it’s the role players who can make a difference in a series like this where wild swings in productivity up and down both rosters threaten to throw everything out of whack.
For the Warriors, they were forced to lean heavily on Steph Curry, who despite the loss had the Finals performance of his career with both Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant out in Game 4. The Raptors, however, had six players score in double figures to give them the balanced attack they needed to take control of the series.
One of those players was Fred VanVleet, who has seen a noticeable uptick in his scoring and efficiency as the postseason has progressed. That just happened to coincide with the birth of his infant child, and of course, the internet has run wild with that development.
VanVleet, however, has ambivalent feelings about that and naturally wants to make sure he gets some of the credit for his improved play. Here’s what he told reporters when asked whether wants to credit his son for recent hot streak.
“No, he gets no credit,” VanVleet said. “I wish I could go back in time and not tell anyone that I had a kid so I could get all the glory for turning around my performance.”
VanVleet was obviously joking. The Raptors, however, are dead serious about needing him to keep playing at his peak if they want to take Game 4 at Oracle on Friday night and head back to Toronto with a commanding 3-1 series lead.
