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If the Golden State Warriors have been making this series look easy, that's not necessarily because the Utah Jazz have been easy to deal with.

At least that's the impression acting coach Mike Brown left despite entering Monday night with a 3-0 lead.

He reserved most of his praise for Gordon Hayward, who led Utah in scoring in Game 2 (33 points) and Game 3 (29 points) and who has a much-anticipated free agency arriving this summer.

"Gordon Hayward's tough," Brown said. "He's long, he's athletic. He can score from three levels. He can post up. He moves well without the ball. He can handle the ball. He can play pick and roll. When you watch him, I don't know what he can't do. He's been showing everybody during the playoffs, when it's most important, he's a phenomenal talent."

Brown also had compliments for center Rudy Gobert ("his story of how he got to where he is is just amazing") and coach Quin Snyder ("Quin puts them in the right position to make plays").

Kerr still a presence

When it comes to the medical status of the man he's filling in for, Brown doesn't have much to say. Warriors general manager Bob Myers has fielded most questions about Steve Kerr, who underwent a spinal cord leak procedure in North Carolina over the weekend.

Brown said he had talked twice by phone with Kerr on Monday.

"This morning I kind of gave him a rundown on what we were going to do and he gave his input," Brown said. "The things we've been telling the team is, 'Hey, offensively let's keep it simple and try not to turn it over, and defensively, let's be locked in.' ... And he's said it all year, we can win if we can do those two things."

Green still anti-Raider

Shortly after the Oakland Raiders officially were approved to relocate to Las Vegas, Draymond Green encouraged fans to boycott the team.

The recent signing of his friend, former Seattle Seahawks running back and Bay Area native Marshawn Lynch, has apparently not moved him from that stance. Although the two are close — Lynch kept Green company when Green was suspended last year during a Finals game — Green said he hasn't budged: "It's still in effect."

But Green also noted that he was happy for Lynch.

"It's like a dream come true for him," he said. "Obviously it's the last couple years he can do it, so he's taking advantage of that situation."

kgoon@sltrib.com

Twitter: @kylegoon