So wouldn't the team then be better off with a tough defensively minded role player taking up Love's roster spot?The same Love who has played a total of 22 seconds in the last two fourth quarters?
Yes, I argued that this past offseason, no idea why they re-signed him except to stockpile assets. It doesn't matter much because the East is so weak and CLE can just outscore most teams without having to play too much D, but you can't play him at defensive 5 and beat the top West teams. Now that they have Frye, he's even a worse fit, I expect him to be traded this offseason.So wouldn't the team then be better off with a tough defensively minded role player taking up Love's roster spot?
Yeah, they're not getting anything from Curry or Green, it's amazing they're this close.Warriors needed to cut that lead in to single digits. 12 might be too tough to overcome in Oklahoma, with Curry having a pretty terrible game.
Not Foye or Kanter tonight, but yeah. Green and Curry are basket cases tonight.OKC's role players are also all playing out of their minds, starting somewhere in the SA series. Adams (maybe not a role player), Roberson, Waiters, no one saw this coming.
No shame in struggling against KD, but it got in his head and now Roberson is working him.Green is -23. Can't believe it.
Without a doubt. They may not look great right now but a home crowd and some favourable calls could make a huge difference.I'm totally enjoying this but Oakland can win 3 in a row
I wouldn't be so cocksure about that. The kid's been coming on.Roberson will never play a better game than this
Even when he drives, they seem to always have guys contesting him at the rim.Funny how size still matters in basketball. And selling out on Curry 's 3s is working out great. Better that he drive than shoot from deep.
Of all the analysis in this thread, this is the one piece I agree with most. Someone else observed that Curry looks hurt and I have to agree. He simply doesn't have his normal swagger. And Green has been taken out of his game by his own actions though he showed something towards the end of tonight. Furthermore, huge credit to Westbrook, Durant, Adams, Ibaka, Roberson and even Waiters who have all elevated their games at the right time.Donovan is coaching circles around kerr through 4 games
I don't think Donovan is coaching rings around Kerr. It's just that for the first time in two years, GSW has matchup problems and they could be unsolvable. When GSW goes to its "death lineup,", typically the other team doesn't have 1 - much less 2 - 6'11" players who can score, defend on the perimeter, and protect the rim. I mean the Cs gave GSW fits with IT, Bradley, Smart, Crowder, and a random big. Imagine if IT was 6'5" and Crowder was 6'11" plus Jerakbo could actually protect against the rim.Donovan is coaching circles around kerr through 4 games
Role players typically play better at home, so it's not surprising that guys like Waiters are playing well in OKC. I think Golden State wins game 5 and then if they get to game 7, I like their chances at home there as well.I wish I could put my finger on why the Warriors are losing, but it seems like such a wide array of things, I'm not sure how it's fixable. It does seem like OKC is the more tenacious team -- they're getting to the 50-50 balls, they're denying everything at the rim, etc. The Warriors knew how important tonight's game was and still let it get away from them in the first half. One assumes that they'll play like men possessed on Thursday, but I'd assumed the same thing about tonight's game.
Part of the problem with hiding Curry defensively last night was that Klay got in early foul trouble. That meant they had to move Klay off Westbrook and hide him to keep him on the court for his offense, which meant Curry had to guard Westbrook. Curry can't keep up with Westbrook (no one can), and that wore Curry down in the second half, causing his offense to suffer.
I think this is the most pressing issue for the Warriors at this point. When this lineup is on the floor, they have nowhere to hide Curry defensively. Stick him on Westbrook, and he's toast. Stick him on Roberson (who, as has previously been said, is playing well above his established performance level) and the Thunder will run the Westbrook-Roberson PnR all day. The Warriors can't afford to have guys help off of any of KD, Waiter and Ibaka, as all 3 are established 3 point shooters. So you're in a borderline 2-on-2 situation with Curry as 1 of the 2 defenders...not going to end well often. It's tougher to double Westbrook now too b/c it appears that Roberson has at least realized he just needs to cut to the hoop to facilitate the offense.
Offensively, if Curry doesn't have it going, then the Dubs are obviously going to look much worse. It's one thing if Steph is missing his own shots coming off of screens or off the dribble, but the number of turnovers tonight was just stunning. It's like he forgot what to do with the basketball when given space inside of the arc. Whatever it is, Kerr need to look at more way to move Curry off ball and use the gravity of his presence to create more room for Thompson PnR's with Green, Bogut, and Iguodala.
I think Ezeli needs to play more if Bogut can't find ways to contribute more/be less hurt. The offensive rebounding situation is starting to get out of control imo. Draymond is a great defender but he's not a rim protector, and he's not going to single-handedly out-rebound Ibaka and Adams. We know at this point you're not going to get a ton of Iggy/Barnes help on the boards either, but I don't think they can get away with giving the Thunder 15 offensive boards.
Well, it's 3-1, I'd bet against them, but that doesn't mean the same as thinking the series is over. Whatever is ailing Draymond and Curry needs to get fixed in a hurry and I'd imagine they come out flying Thursday night. If they don't, and game 5 is a grind, even if the Warriors win it, I think OKC ends it in 6. But if GS gets their swagger back tomorrow night, then Saturday is going to be fun.Finally, I know for most folks this series is over but I won't bet against Golden State here. They won all three regular season games against OKC so its possible. But they were both different teams back then.
Yes OKC is a great team that is peaking at the right time, but when the 72 win Bulls went into the playoffs no other team could realistically expect to peak and beat them. They were tough team and a defensive nightmare for other opponents. The 95-96 Bulls only lost 3 games all playoffs.If OKC takes down the Warriors, the hot takes crowd (basically those with the low intellect and sports knowledge of a Skip Bayless...yeah, I am looking at you Hagios) will use terms like choke and "finesse" which all sound great to the mouth-breathers. However it discredits this OKC team which has peaked at the right time, beating two of the best teams in the NBA this season in rapid succession.
I mean, they're a "finesse" team inasmuch as they've got some incredibly skilled offensive players, but they're a very good defensive team as well. They finished the regular season in a virtual tie (with the Celtics, Jazz and Clippers) for third overall in Adjusted Defensive Rating. Last year they finished first. Green, Bogut and Klay are elite defenders. Ezeli and Iguodala are very good.Yes OKC is a great team that is peaking at the right time, but when the 72 win Bulls went into the playoffs no other team could realistically expect to peak and beat them. They were tough team and a defensive nightmare for other opponents. The 95-96 Bulls only lost 3 games all playoffs.
The only way you can salvage the theory that Golden State is an historically great team is to put it all on Curry's ankle. Which is absolutely a big factor. It may even be the only factor. But given the way the playoffs opened up for them last year, I don't think you can so easily write off the theory that perhaps, yes, GS is a finesse team and defense wins championships. Or have you completely discarded that as a possibility?
I know I didn't believe in Golden State last season and while it's true that the path opened up nicely for them last year they, for lack of better phrase, simply got the job done. This postseason is playing out like I thought last one was going to......how much of that is Curry being injured and how much is Donovan/OKC's defensive coaches schemes is what the debate really should be about. Even a healthy Curry would have trouble against the attention to detail from OKC's off the ball defenders who are switching and getting physical with Curry in denying him the ball. Again, how much so probably is a direct result of Curry not being fully healthy but it's difficult to know how much. Either way, Donovan is killing it in this series.......his team is more focused, determined, and prepared to win playoff games than Kerr's.Yes OKC is a great team that is peaking at the right time, but when the 72 win Bulls went into the playoffs no other team could realistically expect to peak and beat them. They were tough team and a defensive nightmare for other opponents. The 95-96 Bulls only lost 3 games all playoffs.
The only way you can salvage the theory that Golden State is an historically great team is to put it all on Curry's ankle. Which is absolutely a big factor. It may even be the only factor. But given the way the playoffs opened up for them last year, I don't think you can so easily write off the theory that perhaps, yes, GS is a finesse team and defense wins championships. Or have you completely discarded that as a possibility?
How does that idea square with the fact that, by pretty much every available measure, Golden State's defense was better than OKC's this year and that Golden State has the best rated defense of any team left in the playoffs?Yes OKC is a great team that is peaking at the right time, but when the 72 win Bulls went into the playoffs no other team could realistically expect to peak and beat them. They were tough team and a defensive nightmare for other opponents. The 95-96 Bulls only lost 3 games all playoffs.
The only way you can salvage the theory that Golden State is an historically great team is to put it all on Curry's ankle. Which is absolutely a big factor. It may even be the only factor. But given the way the playoffs opened up for them last year, I don't think you can so easily write off the theory that perhaps, yes, GS is a finesse team and defense wins championships. Or have you completely discarded that as a possibility?
Yes, I'm comfortable writing off the theory that GS is a soft, finesse team that can't play defense.Yes OKC is a great team that is peaking at the right time, but when the 72 win Bulls went into the playoffs no other team could realistically expect to peak and beat them. They were tough team and a defensive nightmare for other opponents. The 95-96 Bulls only lost 3 games all playoffs.
The only way you can salvage the theory that Golden State is an historically great team is to put it all on Curry's ankle. Which is absolutely a big factor. It may even be the only factor. But given the way the playoffs opened up for them last year, I don't think you can so easily write off the theory that perhaps, yes, GS is a finesse team and defense wins championships. Or have you completely discarded that as a possibility?
I wouldn't discount the toughness factor. There were two scenarios last night where there was a loose ball which had several Warriors reaching and lunging for the ball while Westbrook dove on the floor to gain possession on one occasion and deflect the ball out to a teammate on another while the Golden State players were standing there flat-footed in a daze. One team is watching things happen while the other is making things happen. Call it what you want.....toughness, grit, determination.....whatever it is one team has had it while the other hasn't and some do call that being soft.Yes, I'm comfortable writing off the theory that GS is a soft, finesse team that can't play defense.
GSW's problems in this series aren't defense anyway. In Games 1 and 4, OKC won despite shooting 43.8% and 43.3%. GSW's problems are rebounding and turnovers, not an inability to get stops.
And OKC's advantage in this series isn't toughness or strength/power, it's length and speed. OKC has beaten GSW by going small and running them off the court, which I never would have believed could happen. The Adams/Kanter two-big lineup that dominated the Spurs has barely played in this series.
My default view is that toughness/grit/determination are way overrated as explanations of sports outcomes. There are cases where that happens, but they are much rarer than the frequency with which people resort to silly cliches about psychological narratives. Westbrook is the quickest, fastest player in the league, why should we be surprised that he gets to loose balls before anyone else does?I wouldn't discount the toughness factor. There were two scenarios last night where there was a loose ball which had several Warriors reaching and lunging for the ball while Westbrook dove on the floor to gain possession on one occasion and deflect the ball out to a teammate on another while the Golden State players were standing there flat-footed in a daze. One team is watching things happen while the other is making things happen. Call it what you want.....toughness, grit, determination.....whatever it is one team has had it while the other hasn't and some do call that being soft.
Because he is the only one diving on the floor to get it while the others are watching him? Trying not to overthink it here. On these plays he clearly outworked the Warriors surrounding him.....that isn't a cliché.My default view is that toughness/grit/determination are way overrated as explanations of sports outcomes. There are cases where that happens, but they are much rarer than the frequency with which people resort to silly cliches about psychological narratives. Westbrook is the quickest, fastest player in the league, why should we be surprised that he gets to loose balls before anyone else does?
I think that people have to stop comparing OKC's regular season stats with those of Golden State. For Donavan, the regular season was about experimentation. He had to re-integrate Durant (coming off an injury) into a lineup full of players he'd never played with before (Waiters, Kanter, Singler, DJ Augustin, etc.). He tried all sorts of different combinations out there; some worked, some didn't. From the Lee Jenkins article on SI.com (sorry my attempt to post a link was unsuccessful):How does that idea square with the fact that, by pretty much every available measure, Golden State's defense was better than OKC's this year and that Golden State has the best rated defense of any team left in the playoffs?