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| This game meant a lot to some people as many have predicted the two teams to make it to the NBA Finals. Additionally, Stephen Curry and LeBron James are both making convincing arguments for why they should win the MVP. |
when he goes from inside to outside. LeBron opened the game up with some post-ups on the smaller Draymond Green and eventually worked his way out to the perimeter, making four three pointers throughout the contest.
Andrew Bogut cannot...
afford to get into foul trouble. The center picked up two early fouls in the first quarter, forcing him to be called back to the bench. LeBron capitalized on this by attacking the basket through drives and post-ups.
Kyrie Irving...
has grown into a much better defender than given credit for. He prevented Curry from getting in a rhythm by bodying Curry whilst moving without the ball, which is probably the best way to guard the prolific sharpshooter. Kyrie also moved his feet well for most of the night and has always been good at attacking passing lanes. To get a better idea of the work Irving has been doing on that end of the floor, check the stats of opposing point guards over the Cavaliers' hot streak. Players like John Wall, Kyle Lowry, Damian Lillard, and Chris Paul put up poor shooting numbers and struggled to score even fifteen points.
In-bounds plays...
have become a big strength for the Warriors under Steve Kerr and his experienced coaching staff. The best indication of this is the play executed in the closing seconds of the first half. This is a great sign for the Warriors as that aspect of the game was a major achilles heel for the team the previous two years and it significantly hurt them in the playoffs.
Cleveland's defense...
is aggressive with double teams and over rotating, which can be detrimental against a good passing team like the Warriors. Golden State had some really good open looks because of that.
David Lee...
deserves more playing time during the playoffs as he has proven that he's still one of the better power forwards in the league. His IQ and knack for scoring picked up the bench immensely yesterday.
On the other hand...
Cleveland's bench has almost no scoring options, but with so much firepower in the starting lineup that may not be necessary. Most players coming off the bench are defensively talented or provide hustle play instead. David Blatt's ability to mix in Kyrie, LeBron, and J.R. Smith with the second unit keeps the team competitive.
Free throw shooting...
was a problem for the Warriors last night as it often killed momentum. Draymond Green is especially guilty of this as he was only 2-5 from the charity stripe. I alluded to this issue in my previous post about Golden State.
Kevin Love...
should be fed in the post more. When the Warriors went with a small lineup in the third quarter it was an opportune time for Love to get aggressive in the post but Cleveland never gave him the ball down there aside from one possession where he was matched up with Draymond Green and scored.
Golden State...
settled for a lot of long jumpers as they attempted twenty-nine three pointers. Although they made eleven of those shots (~38%), it created for the enormous free throw disparity. As a team, the Warriors shot nineteen free throws and only made ten of those. Compare that to LeBron and Kyrie, both of whom were aggressive in their offensive approach, combined to make eighteen of their twenty-one free throw attempts.
Cavalier fans...
should be ecstatic with how their team defended, limiting the league's second best offense to less than 100 points and 42% shooting. Newcomers Timofey Mozgov and Iman Shumpert have been phenomenal on the defensive end of the floor. Shumpert has pressured ball handlers his entire career and coach David Blatt has catered his defense to having Mozgov protect the painted area. Kyrie Irving and J.R. Smith's defense were initially questioned but their play has proven doubters otherwise. Lastly, LeBron can take it upon himself to guard and shut out the opposing team's best player, regardless of position.
Warrior fans...
shouldn't worry too much over this game. I heard fans calling in on KNBR last night discussing how this Warriors team would never win a championship but those people need to R-E-L-A-X. The Warriors missed a few open shots that they tend to convert, and players who are usually consistent played pretty poorly (Bogut and Livingston). Also keep in mind that Cleveland is the hottest team in the NBA and came into the game winning their previous ten at home.
Key Notes:
- All of Curry's made three pointers were in the first quarter. He only scored 6 points in the last three quarters combined.
- Outside of the first quarter, Golden State's scoring output was lacking as they only averaged 22 points/quarter after that.
- Steve Kerr got another technical, which now puts him in 2nd in the league amongst coaches.
- Klay Thompson had a poor shooting night overall due to good defense from J.R. Smith but he still managed to shoot 3-5 from deep.
- Timofey Mozgov had a game high +/- at +17, a stat he has excelled at since coming to Cleveland.
- Tristan Thompson played exceptionally well in his limited time, scoring 12 points and grabbing 8 rebounds in only 21 minutes.
- David Blatt played Shumpert for 31 minutes even though the shooting guard did not record a single point. The coach rewarded defense.
- Each team collected 10 steals in the game with J.R. Smith accounting for 4 for his team and Draymond Green getting 5 for his.
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