NBA: Curry and Warriors enjoy last regular season night at Oakland

Golden State Warriors enjoyed itself as it played at Oracle Arena for the last time in the NBA regular season on Sunday.

Published : Apr 08, 2019 16:54 IST

Stephen Curry said the reality of leaving Oracle Arena hit home as Golden State Warriors enjoyed a "night of celebration" in its final regular-season game in Oakland.

After 47 years in the city, the Warriors are to move to neighbouring San Francisco when Chase Center opens at the start of next season.

Golden State has brought three titles to Oakland in the last four years and was able to secure the top seed in the Western Conference on Sunday as it bade farewell to Oracle Arena in regular-season terms, although it will return for the playoffs.

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Curry and his team-mates wore retro uniforms to mark the occasion and were delighted to be able to deliver the 131-104 defeat of the Los Angeles Clippers on a historic night.

"It's definitely a different feel just in terms of what [the game] means," Curry told reporters. "We're closing out 47 regular seasons playing in this building and then we saw the throwback jerseys in our lockers - that's when I think it became a little bit real.

"It's a different celebration, a pretty cool night all the way around. I'm glad we got the win in the fashion that we did. It's a night of celebration, blending the history and the present, and I'm looking forward to next weekend."

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The game ended with coach Steve Kerr addressing the supporters and thanking them for their support in Oakland over the years.

"All you fans have stuck with us through thick and thin," he said. "Let's be honest, most of those years have been a little thin but we've got some good stuff going on right now."

But Kerr said afterwards that the experience was a little odd given the Warriors' imminent playoff schedule.

"It was kind of strange, to be honest with you," he told a news conference. "It was a really nice moment and all the fans stuck around, which was great. But we're coming right back and playing Game 1 on Saturday or Sunday. Hopefully we'll have another send-off in a grander manner."

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