The Golden State Warriors drew
first blood in their record-setting third straight Finals matchup with the
Cleveland Cavaliers. Despite not quite
functioning at their best (they missed a couple of easy layups and open looks; Klay
and Draymond only combined for 6-of-29 shooting), they managed to rout the
defending champions due primarily to the following reasons:
a.) The Cavs beat the Dubs in the
rebound battle (59 to 50), but this is off-set when the Cavs turned the ball
over 20 times while the Dubs only did so 4 times. This significantly helped the Dubs to win the
possession game, allowing them to take 20 shots more than the Cavs (106 to 86).
b.) Simply, Dubs had a gameplan,
and executed it with poise. Meanwhile, the
Cavs lacked energy and grit. Their
defense was porous, and Coach Lue failed to make adjustments on the fly and
rally his team.
c.) The Cavs, in an attempt to
run Stephen Curry out of the three point line, let Durant take a ton of
uncontested dunks. Sure, giving up two
points is better than giving up three points.
But, still, letting Durant dunk freely to achieve that is not a wise strategy.
d.) Kevin Durant managed to outplay
King James (38 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 0 turnovers, 54% shooting vs. 28
points, 15 rebounds, 8 assists, 8 turnovers, 45% shooting) on both ends of the
floor! Durant had no problem scoring on LeBron. On the other hand, the lengthy Durant managed
to bother LeBron. Here’s my favorite
Durant-defending-Lebron moment, which led to a Stephen Curry trey on
transition:
e.) The Dubs’ defense.
When we hear “Dubs’ defense”, the
first thing that comes to mind is Draymond Green. That’s understandable since he’s the best
defender in the NBA not named Kawhi Leonard.
He should win the Defensive Player of the Year award this year. And, as usual, he delivered a fantastic
defensive performance in Game 1. He
played tenaciously and intelligently.
Dray reads the Cavs' play, directs his teammates, then anticipates the pass. Brilliant. |
But, again, this is a given for him. He’s the Dubs’ “defensive captain” after all. Steph, Iggy, and Durant also had beautiful
defensive moments. As a whole, the
Warriors are an awesome defensive team.
But Klay Thompson’s performance,
for me, was the most notable thing about the Dubs’ defense in Game 1. He didn’t have a great offensive outing like
Durant and Curry, as his playoff shooting slump continued. He only scored six points from 3 of his 16
shots; he missed all five of his three
point attempts. Nevertheless, he was the
Warrior I had the most fun watching in Game 1.
Screw the boxscore; it doesn’t show how terrific Klay’s defense was.
He took on the Cavs’ best scorers,
and made their lives miserable.
He shut down J.R. Smith.,,
He shut down J.R. Smith.,,
According to ESPN Stats and Info…
Yep, the collective Cavalier only
shot 8.3% against Klay. And that one
shot that managed to get in was Kyrie Irving’s “prayer of a three-pointer +
foul” highlight play – basically an outlier, a fluke.
Klay Thompson is one of the best
two-way players in the league – probably just second to Kawhi (and LeBron, when
he feels like defending). Even if his shooting
remains cold this Finals, as long as his tenacious lockdown defense can be
counted on – which is all but certain – Klay will always have tremendous value. Now, imagine if, on
top of this, he gets over his slump; he gets hot again. He’s, after all, the kind of player that is
very much capable of suddenly dropping 50 points. Scary.
Sure, LeBron is still a demigod. It’s very possible for the Cavs to bounce back from this series. After all, they did it last year, after being routed in the first two games. Nevertheless, Klay Thompson could prove to be a genuine nightmare waiting to happen.
Sure, LeBron is still a demigod. It’s very possible for the Cavs to bounce back from this series. After all, they did it last year, after being routed in the first two games. Nevertheless, Klay Thompson could prove to be a genuine nightmare waiting to happen.
This time around, Klay and the Dubs wasting another advantage of “3-1” proportions is quite unlikely.
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