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JR never got on the plane. He's had a few of these head scratchers in NBA Finals games. I didn't even know where to start. He seemed to be a step late or out of position all night. His best play may have been the dumbest foul of night, spilling Curry on the floor, but JR or any other Cav didn't follow it up and get things ignited.
TT was outplayed and outhustled by Zaza for crying out loud. I don't want to hear from the Warrior faithful that Zaza is some diamond in the rough that has just remerged because of the cast around him now....he's terrible. TT should be ashamed of that performance. Kevin Love had to do his dirty work but couldn't hit anything.
JR Smith needs to be physical on both ends of the court--something he did reasonably well in Game 1. The Warriors have too much defense for the Cavs to rely on JR Smith creating offense. His defense, though . . . it has to be a lot better.
Zaza is a quality rotation big. He sets good screens, rebounds effectively, passes well, and stays in position on defense. It helps that he's surrounded by the league's most dangerous scorers and a bunch of top flight defenders. Tristan will have better games in this series, for sure.
I don't think the Cavs can play Thompson and Love at the same time. There are no Warriors lineups where there's a spot for both of them on defense. The closest you'll get is putting one on Iguodala and the other on Zaza/McGee, but Iguodala is a good ball handler and playmaker, and the Warriors will be happy to run the offense through him with Love trying to check him.
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Originally Posted by DRob4JC
The other factor is my dark horse MVP - McGee. He played 5 minutes... GSW was +8 while he was in the game. McGee is an upgrade from Bogut - if he played starter's minutes. Zaza did halway decent, so they didn't need McGee much.
Thompson needs to bring it. He is their only true center.
McGee is not going to get a lot of minutes. He needs to come in and deliver a short burst of energy. That's what he'll do. If he gets extended minutes, Lebron will eat him alive on the interior.
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Originally Posted by eastcoastbias
It didn't help nothing fell from the outside. Kevin Love for crying out loud. Korver WIDE open looks. Those guys will get it going again.
But, Yeah they panicked. I thought we weren't aggressive at the rim. Lebron had a few dunk opportunities and he went tear drops and pushing the ball same with Thompson. I thought the Refs "let'em play" at the hoop and the Cavs didn't adjust to that style.
And 20 turnovers- half were forced-some of the Warriors didn't shot that well but they deflected balls and I've criticized them in the past for being a soft team but they were physical. The other half of the turnovers were a few random dumb plays from JR and some throwaways, thought a few of the strips were mostly arm and wrist hacks- but whatever it wasn't the reason the Cavs lost.
What was more telling was the long loose ball rebounds that the Warriors had- I thought the hustle was disgusting from the Cavs. It looked like they played in Boston on Wednesday night and flew to Oakland for a back to back.
The communication on defense will work itself out. The shots will fall and I expect the typical Cavs rebound edge to come back. I think Shump has earned minutes over JR in this series.
The takeaways on offense protect the ball and if the ref is going to swallow the whistle they need to play through contact. AND HIT SHOTS- that will prevent the run outs and let you set up a defense as well- which was awful (on the help side).
Lebron 0-5 last five Game 1 NBA Finals.
The Cavs missed a few open 3s, but most of their shots were contested. And more importantly, the passing lanes were non-existent on drives. That's why there were so many turnovers. Lebron got a lot of free throws in this game. Feel free to complain about officiating, but I saw what I'm used to: the Warriors attacked the paint more than their opponent and drew fewer whistles (though not less contact).
Communication and effort on defense were clear problems for the Cavs. They have not been a good defensive team this year. Good habits need to be developed.
Shumpert is a critical player in this series for the Cavs. He needs to log heavy minutes defending the Warriors scorers.
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Originally Posted by Blind Cleric
Was he also injured last year? Seemed to have a lot more hop in his legs during game 1, as opposed to last year's finals. GS can put Green, Iggy or Durant on James with decent results.
On the other side, it must be troubling that no one can ever check Durant, and Curry leisurely coasted through the game.
Strange that the Cavs were so concerned about the 3 ball on the break that they'd let Durant waltz in for dunks. That's not a good strategy. When they finally put bodies in front of him, he did find Curry for a three.
But, it was just a hold of serve. Game 2 will be better-wanna bet?
Iguodala had back problems develop during the Finals last year (Game 4 or 5, can't remember which). Lebron took advantage by going at him and Iguodala had nothing there.
What was most interesting in Game 1 was how much the Warriors put single coverage on James. They flashed on the pick & roll, and they brought help at the end of drives, but in the post and off the dribble, they mostly put a defender on an island, daring James to score.
The Cavs transition defense was . . . peculiar. It may be the smart play to prevent a wide open corner 3 from Curry, but it looks weird and must be demoralizing for KD to walk to the basket for a dunk with no defender coming near him.
In the half court, the Warriors got a lot of wide open looks off of very simple action. The Cavs need to be much more locked in and much more physical on defense in order to compete.
The Warriors just did what they are supposed to: win on their home court. There will be adjustments in Game 2, and it will be interesting.
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Originally Posted by 0nyxStation
Clevelands bench didn't look so hot last night. Lebron played well, but may not have played well enough. 22 pts is a big lead for this match up.
Lebron can't turn it over 8 times. Those were uncharacteristically bad decisions, and he has to clean it up.
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Originally Posted by weezerfan84
And he can go unconscious on 3's as well. You could see when he hit that first 3 in the 3Q that they were about to go on a run. Klay Thompson's poor play will in this post season will be downplayed, because Durant is better than him and Harrison Barnes combined. Harrison Barnes played very poorly in the Finals last year. Durant hobbling on a bum ankle is better than Barnes was. Also, Javale McGee has played well on this team. I think he's found his team to ride out a good amount of his career.
Iggy will be instrumental in this Finals, because he's playing like he did in the 2015 Finals with his defense. He's the best matchup they have against Lebron on their team. I really want the Cavs to pull it out, and not because I don't like the Warriors, but this Warriors team is stacked and almost a little unfair. I only say that because they got a top 5 player for nothing, and they got him after coming off a 73 win season. They didn't need him, but nothing is in the rule book to stop him from going there.
I do want to add this tidbit. Don't be surprised if Klay Thompson reups with this team for less money in the future. This string of no show performances is not good for his bank account during these playoffs. I wonder if he's deferred and just wants to be more 3&D and collect some rings.
Klay is missing his shots, but he played great defense--1st Team All-Defense caliber. His shots will eventually start falling. As long as he is defending this well, it doesn't really matter. Klay will always be a 3 & D player, but he's the best 3 & D player in the NBA. That's a really valuable skill set. I expect the Warriors to go deep into luxury territory to keep their core 4.
The Warriors would have been a great team without Durant, but they are better with him, and much more well-positioned for the future. Handing out a max or near-max contract for Barnes would have been . . . hard to swallow.
And I think it's great to finally see Durant with the kind of pieces and coaching staff he deserves to play with.
Iguodala gave them good minutes, and I expect that to continue. On defense, he gives them another look to throw at Lebron, and it helps.
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Originally Posted by ma5cmpb
I think the Cavs are in trouble. I know that people will bring up last year but this is a different Warriors team for one reason, Kevin Durant. With Lebron guarding him, he can cause Lebron to wear down. In the earlier series Lebron was guarding Demarre Carrol and Jae Crowder. He will get worn out chasing around Durant the entire game.
Richard Jefferson will help out some but no one else on the team can guard Durant. I know that JR, Korver and Deron Williams were off but so were Draymond and Klay. So I see this series going 5-6 games.
It looked pretty clear in Game 1 that Lebron can't defend Durant 1 on 1. I think the Cavs need to use Lebron elsewhere and let KD get his on a different mismatch. I think Lebron needs to be on Draymond Green.
Richard Jefferson can't guard any of the Warriors scorers. He can come in and get physical, but he does not have the quickness or acumen at this stage of his career to get it done.
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Originally Posted by Kobe25
Yes they got Durant but this Warrior's team came together through handwork and dedication.Draft picks and continuing to get better year after year.
Nobody was checking for Curry,Klay or Green 4 or 5 years ago.See people forget the early years of this great team.
This team wasn't put together by Superstars from different squads teaming to play together.This team has been working hard since the Baron Davis/Mark Jackson days.
Curry like Kobe before him just kept working hard and working hard until he eventually became what he is today.Klay Thompson followed suit and now we have the Splash Brothers.I tell kids at the gym all the time to follow the blueprint of the Splash Brothers.Keep working on your game and stay dedicated.
Hardwork and dedication will eventually payoff.
They did. It has been amazing watching this team grow. Curry's skills were there as a rookie under Don Nelson--the passing, shooting, handling, and vision. He's developed a lot of strength and NBA IQ in the intervening years. The picks were stellar: Curry at 7, Klay at 11, Draymond at 35. All of them were incredible value.
Kerr and his staff have really put together a great offensive system for these players to work through, and these are great players. It's clear why KD joined this team--his talents mesh perfectly and this team gives him the opportunity to raise the level of his game. Durant's shooting over 60% on 2s in the playoffs, scoring over 26 on less then 17 field goals. He has been a marauding defender surrounded by quality defensive players. This is an undeniably great basketball situation and a perfect fit.
What should scare the rest of the league is that this team still has a lot of room to grow.
JR Smith needs to be physical on both ends of the court--something he did reasonably well in Game 1. The Warriors have too much defense for the Cavs to rely on JR Smith creating offense. His defense, though . . . it has to be a lot better.
Zaza is a quality rotation big. He sets good screens, rebounds effectively, passes well, and stays in position on defense. It helps that he's surrounded by the league's most dangerous scorers and a bunch of top flight defenders. Tristan will have better games in this series, for sure.
I don't think the Cavs can play Thompson and Love at the same time. There are no Warriors lineups where there's a spot for both of them on defense. The closest you'll get is putting one on Iguodala and the other on Zaza/McGee, but Iguodala is a good ball handler and playmaker, and the Warriors will be happy to run the offense through him with Love trying to check him.
McGee is not going to get a lot of minutes. He needs to come in and deliver a short burst of energy. That's what he'll do. If he gets extended minutes, Lebron will eat him alive on the interior.
The Cavs missed a few open 3s, but most of their shots were contested. And more importantly, the passing lanes were non-existent on drives. That's why there were so many turnovers. Lebron got a lot of free throws in this game. Feel free to complain about officiating, but I saw what I'm used to: the Warriors attacked the paint more than their opponent and drew fewer whistles (though not less contact).
Communication and effort on defense were clear problems for the Cavs. They have not been a good defensive team this year. Good habits need to be developed.
Shumpert is a critical player in this series for the Cavs. He needs to log heavy minutes defending the Warriors scorers.
Iguodala had back problems develop during the Finals last year (Game 4 or 5, can't remember which). Lebron took advantage by going at him and Iguodala had nothing there.
What was most interesting in Game 1 was how much the Warriors put single coverage on James. They flashed on the pick & roll, and they brought help at the end of drives, but in the post and off the dribble, they mostly put a defender on an island, daring James to score.
The Cavs transition defense was . . . peculiar. It may be the smart play to prevent a wide open corner 3 from Curry, but it looks weird and must be demoralizing for KD to walk to the basket for a dunk with no defender coming near him.
In the half court, the Warriors got a lot of wide open looks off of very simple action. The Cavs need to be much more locked in and much more physical on defense in order to compete.
The Warriors just did what they are supposed to: win on their home court. There will be adjustments in Game 2, and it will be interesting.
Lebron can't turn it over 8 times. Those were uncharacteristically bad decisions, and he has to clean it up.
Klay is missing his shots, but he played great defense--1st Team All-Defense caliber. His shots will eventually start falling. As long as he is defending this well, it doesn't really matter. Klay will always be a 3 & D player, but he's the best 3 & D player in the NBA. That's a really valuable skill set. I expect the Warriors to go deep into luxury territory to keep their core 4.
The Warriors would have been a great team without Durant, but they are better with him, and much more well-positioned for the future. Handing out a max or near-max contract for Barnes would have been . . . hard to swallow.
And I think it's great to finally see Durant with the kind of pieces and coaching staff he deserves to play with.
Iguodala gave them good minutes, and I expect that to continue. On defense, he gives them another look to throw at Lebron, and it helps.
It looked pretty clear in Game 1 that Lebron can't defend Durant 1 on 1. I think the Cavs need to use Lebron elsewhere and let KD get his on a different mismatch. I think Lebron needs to be on Draymond Green.
Richard Jefferson can't guard any of the Warriors scorers. He can come in and get physical, but he does not have the quickness or acumen at this stage of his career to get it done.
They did. It has been amazing watching this team grow. Curry's skills were there as a rookie under Don Nelson--the passing, shooting, handling, and vision. He's developed a lot of strength and NBA IQ in the intervening years. The picks were stellar: Curry at 7, Klay at 11, Draymond at 35. All of them were incredible value.
Kerr and his staff have really put together a great offensive system for these players to work through, and these are great players. It's clear why KD joined this team--his talents mesh perfectly and this team gives him the opportunity to raise the level of his game. Durant's shooting over 60% on 2s in the playoffs, scoring over 26 on less then 17 field goals. He has been a marauding defender surrounded by quality defensive players. This is an undeniably great basketball situation and a perfect fit.
What should scare the rest of the league is that this team still has a lot of room to grow.
Thompson/Love can put pressure on the Dubs on the other end. I thought Kevin Love had a good game scrapping in the paint, grabbing boards and knowing his defensive assignment. His shot wasn't falling.
I thought Lebron should have been more aggressive and made the wrong decision numerous times on kickouts- the Warriors played the perimeter on his drives. I didn't see the normally aggressive Cleveland offense cutting to the basket on those drives. My feeling is that will change in Game 2. You will see more movement and cuts to basket HOPEFULLY- harder of course to cover moving targets.
Cavs have been a good defensive team the past month and half. The number don't lie.
It's not like they traded Barnes for Durant though.
Durant was a free agent and could've picked any team he wanted lol.Smart choice by a man that wanted to finally join a winning organization and get away from his selfish teammate in Westbrook.Sure it kinda looks bad that he joined the team that beat him a year before but it's his decision.Golden State is still great without him.
I know they didn't trade for Durant. I'm looking at it from the chances of actually winning the lottery. You traded a tier 3 player for a tier 1 player and it cost you nothing. That's the part that's insane. You became a better basketball team and gave up nothing to do it. You gave up Barnes and Bogut, who went to the team you're playing in the Finals and broke his leg in 30 seconds. The chips fell the right way and Durant is here to stay in Oakland. It's rumored that he's willing to take less money to stay a Warrior. There will be no rekindled relationship for him and Westbrook and OKC. OKC will no longer be relevant.
Thompson/Love can put pressure on the Dubs on the other end. I thought Kevin Love had a good game scrapping in the paint, grabbing boards and knowing his defensive assignment. His shot wasn't falling.
Cavs have been a good defensive team the past month and half. The number don't lie.
Regarding Thompson & Love on offense: I don't see how the two of them on the floor is a big offensive plus for the Cavs in this series. Draymond Green is a worst-case scenario defender on Love--he has the quickness to contest Love's 3s and the strength and effort to keep him off of the glass and out of the post. Thompson's offensive contributions are screens and offensive rebounds. The Warriors switch screens and have so many good defenders that TT's screens are not a big plus. The boards could be big, but they also bring a defender into the paint, closing off driving lanes.
Regarding the Cavs defense: the opposition doesn't lie. They struggled against teams that move the ball and move players. No team moves the ball and players like the Warriors do.
All you need to know...say what you want about GS missing a few shots BUT
Cavs won't turn the ball over 20 times and shoot 35% again.
Cut the turnovers in half and shoot 45% and it will be even series headed back to Cleveland.
Not if they continue playing the swinging gate defense that allowed KD uncontested and unhindered dunks on fast breaks. I couldn't believe I was watching defenders leave the ball and give KD a direct path to the basket on multiple occasions.
Not if they continue playing the swinging gate defense that allowed KD uncontested and unhindered dunks on fast breaks. I couldn't believe I was watching defenders leave the ball and give KD a direct path to the basket on multiple occasions.
Regarding Thompson & Love on offense: I don't see how the two of them on the floor is a big offensive plus for the Cavs in this series. Draymond Green is a worst-case scenario defender on Love--he has the quickness to contest Love's 3s and the strength and effort to keep him off of the glass and out of the post. Thompson's offensive contributions are screens and offensive rebounds. The Warriors switch screens and have so many good defenders that TT's screens are not a big plus. The boards could be big, but they also bring a defender into the paint, closing off driving lanes.
Regarding the Cavs defense: the opposition doesn't lie. They struggled against teams that move the ball and move players. No team moves the ball and players like the Warriors do.
You are understating a stretch 4 that has shown a decent post game this year and big time offensive rebounder (who now has space) to operate and one less defender to worry about in the paint.
Things will look much better when the buckets fall.
You are understating a stretch 4 that has shown a decent post game this year and big time offensive rebounder (who now has space) to operate and one less defender to worry about in the paint.
Things will look much better when the buckets fall.
I don't think Love can deliver from 3 or from the post when covered by Draymond. The shots were contested. The Cavs can certainly play better, but I think they need to fix their gameplan first.
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When they finally put bodies in front of him, he did find Curry for a three.
