The Golden State Warriors enter the NBA Finals as big favourites (-280, per Bodog) but there are reasons for hope for the Toronto Raptors.

First among them is the teams’ head-to-head record this season. The Raptors won both their Nov. 18 meeting, 131-128 in overtime at Scotiabank Arena, and their Dec. 18 meeting, 113-93 in Oakland. The regular-season sweep was only the second against Golden State since Steve Kerr took over as head coach of the Warriors in 2014.

Kawhi Leonard led the Raps in scoring in the first meeting with 37 points before sitting out the second game. Meanwhile the Warriors’ leading scorer in the regular season head-to-head, Kevin Durant (51 points in Game 1, 30 points in Game 2), is probable to miss the start of the Finals with a calf injury.

The Raptors also have home-court advantage for the Finals after having to start the Eastern Conference Finals on the road in Milwaukee. The Raptors are 8-2 in front of their hometown fans this postseason and haven’t lost in Toronto since Game 2 against the Philadelphia 76ers. This will also be the first time in their current run of five-straight NBA Finals appearances the Warriors start on the road.

But there are a lot of numbers on the Warriors’ side as well, starting with that fifth-straight trip to the Finals. It's the second-longest streak in NBA history, behind only the Boston Celtics’ 10-straight Finals appearances from 1957-66, and one of only eight such streaks in all four major North American sports combined. It hasn’t been done since the New York Islanders made it to the Stanley Cup Final every year from 1980-84.

A win over the Raptors would put Golden State in even more rarified air. It would be the Warriors’ third straight championship, a feat not accomplished since Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers did so in 2002. It would also be a fourth title in five years for Golden State, putting them alongside only the Lakers (five titles in six years, 1949-54) and Celtics (11 titles in 13 years (1957-69) in the record books. Another title would be the sixth for the Warriors franchise, tying them for third all-time with the Chicago Bulls.

The Raptors could be running into an even more motivated Stephen Curry as well. With a win, the two-time NBA MVP would be surpassed by only Bill Russell, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tim Duncan, and Magic Johnson as multiple MVP winners with more titles.

The only thing Curry hasn’t won is an NBA Finals MVP. He’s entering the championship series with momentum, averaging 27.3 points per game in the playoffs, with four-straight 35+ point performances.

Kerr is also chasing some history. He’s already become the first coach in NBA history to start his career with five-straight Finals appearances (the third in all the major North American sports) and is looking to become the seventh person in NBA history to win nine combined titles (he has five as a player). Of the six who have already accomplished the feat, only Phil Jackson did it without being part of the Celtics’ dynasty.

Odds and Ends

17 – The Raptors swept the two-game regular season series against the Warriors for the first time in 17 years this season.

561 – Kawhi Leonard has scored 561 points this postseason, the sixth highest total for a player ahead of the NBA Finals.

98 – Stephen Curry has connected on 98 three-pointers in the NBA Finals, the most in history.

1 – Nick Nurse will become the first former G League coach to appear in a NBA Finals.

29 – Jeremy Lin played 29 games with Golden State in his rookie season in 2010-11.