The Golden State Warriors rattle off four straight wins since Kevin Durant’s injury. They sent the Houston Rockets home for the summer and became the first NBA team to overcome back to back second half deficits of at least 13 points.

In Saturday’s 110-99 Game 3 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State’s toughness should be the first thing on our minds. Often when the Warriors go on their patented third-quarter run, the response is often something  of “well, they finally decided to start playing.”

“Maybe our toughness is just not highlighted but, you know, it’s so hard to win a championship in this league,” Kerr said “The competition is so fierce and it’s a two-month journey once the playoffs start.”

Golden State can sometimes be characterized as a fast-paced, 3-point-happy team that is overwhelmed with talent, rather than grit. Out of all the Warriors, Draymond Green is the only one who you can even suggest has a reputation of being a tough guy.

“We know our team is tough. We’ve got a lot of grit,” Warriors big man Kevin Looney said after the game “If we lock in and execute the game plan, we can get back into any game with our scoring. When we go down 10-15, we never get worried. We just know that we’ve got to play extra hard and we’ve got to push that pace and just lock in the small things.”

Despite winning three titles in four years it is not easy for the Warriors. They make it look easy sometimes, and that works to their detriment.