Warriors red hot from two, Stephen Curry red hot from three, Warriors pull away in Game 2

By Kurt HelinJun 3, 2018, 10:57 PM EDT
6 Comments

OAKLAND — The reports of the death of the midrange shot are greatly exaggerated.

It’s not the Golden State’s preferred shot — the Warriors pulled away in the fourth quarter of Game 2 because Stephen Curry started doing ridiculous Stephen Curry things and finished with a Finals record nine-made threes (he wants your Finals MVP vote).

It was Curry’s brand of brilliance that built the blowout late, but it was the midrange shot that laid the foundation for that push. It’s the beauty of the Warriors — they can beat you a lot of ways. Give them good midrange looks and they will knock them down.

They did in Game 2 — the Warriors shot 71.1 percent from two in the game (and that was with Curry going 2-of-9 from two, apparently those shots are too close for him). Look at this shot chart.

The result was a 122-103 Golden State win that has the defending champs up 2-0 in the series. The Finals move on to Cleveland for Game 3 Wednesday.

This was an improved Warriors team from Game 1, and when Golden State brings its “A” game they will overwhelm any team, including Cleveland.

“We played really well tonight,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after the win. “There were a few things that bothered us in the second half, a few defensive breakdowns we’ll take a look at on film. But overall it was a really good, balanced game. Good defense. Good intense defense and excellent offense.”

Curry finished with 33 points and had the nine threes. Kevin Durant had 26 points on 10-of-14 shooting. As a team, the Warriors shot 57.3 percent for the game. Klay Thompson, who was questionable for the game with a high ankle sprain, played 34 minutes and scored 20 points — he was just fine.

LeBron James was nothing short of brilliant again — 29 points, 13 rebounds, and nine assists. He is single-handily keeping games close. Kevin Love had 22 points but was once again a defensive liability. As a team, the Cavaliers shot 41.1 percent.

Golden State’s offense was far more crisp in Game 2 than in Game 1, and they attacked. The Cavaliers tried to chase them off the arc early, and the Warriors took that as an invitation to the paint.

The corollary to the Golden State offense is that Cleveland’s long-spotty defense has no answer for the Warriors starters, even if one of them is JaVale McGee.

The Warriors came out of the locker room on fire. McGee got the start (Kevon Looney came off the bench) and then got the first four points of the game, one slipping a screen for Curry, the other cutting to the rim when his man went to help on a Durant drive. The Warriors started the game shooting 7-of-7, and shot 65.2 percent in the first quarter. They raced out to a 15-6 lead.

“We watched the film, and obviously from Game 1 LeBron had an amazing night. But a lot of it was just a lack of kind of sense of urgency early in possessions to try to just be physical,” Curry said after the game. “Klay (Thompson), Draymond (Green) and K.D., especially, were huge in that transformation to Game 2 with just putting up a little bit of resistance, and just trying to make them work.”

The Cavaliers, as they have done throughout the start of this series, would not go away. The Cavaliers attacked the rim more on offense, defended better (once the Warriors got into their shallow bench) and kept it close. It was just a four-point game, 32-28, after one.

Then the Cavaliers started second quarter shooting 1-of-7 and it was a symptom of them not scoring inside — the Cavs were 12-of-27 (44.4 percent) in the paint in the first half. Kevin Love couldn’t buy a three, and the Warriors started to create a little space.

Curry was trying to throw haymakers from three and hit a couple, behind that the Warriors put up 59 points and were up 13 at the half.

Then the seemingly impossible happened — the Cavaliers won the third quarter. By three points, but still. There was no dominant Warriors’ run. Cleveland came out firing from three (4-of-6 in the first six minutes of the third) and Love found his range. The result was the game got pushed back down to a six-point lead.

Still, by the end of the quarter it was 90-80 Warriors. The Cavs just could not close the gap all the way.

Then Curry drained a three on a sweet stepback. Then another.

Curry set the record, and the Warriors are halfway to another title.

Stephen Curry takes lead in Finals MVP race with record-breaking 3-pointers

By Dan FeldmanJun 4, 2018, 12:10 AM EDT
2 Comments

Stephen Curry told Kendrick Perkins about the Cleveland center’s leg placement.

Then, Curry told the Cavaliers about himself.

Curry air-balled a heavily contested fadeaway 3-pointer in front of the Cavs bench to end the third quarter, backed into the legs of a seated Perkins then jawed with the much larger opponent. After Tristan Thompson and LeBron James intervened, Curry walked away shaking his head.

Then, Curry made all five of his 3-pointers in the fourth quarter (including a couple extremely difficult attempts):

…broke the record for 3-pointers in an NBA Finals game (nine):

image

…and set the all-time record for 3-pointers in the NBA Finals (90):

image

Though LeBron – now second place with 85 3-pointers – is also still active in these Finals, it’s hard to see him retaking the record. Curry is a far more prolific outside shooter.

Likewise, it’s tough to see LeBron catching Curry for Finals MVP. Curry has been the Warriors’ best player, leading them in points and assists in both Games 1 and 2. More importantly, Curry has helped Golden State take a 2-0 series lead, and it’s extremely unlikely voters would honor a losing player.

Curry is drilling shots from outside, unless the defensive attention is just too great. Then, he’s maximizing his gravity with passes to teammates moving toward the basket. Repeatedly challenged by the Cavaliers on the other end, Curry is holding up.

His first Finals MVP is hardly cinched, even if the Warriors win. Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson and have played well and are in striking distance. Draymond might be too if we properly valued defense.

But Curry has the narrative, actual production, highlight moments and even trash-talking spirit on his side so far.

It’s not just the stars: Cavaliers don’t have the role players to match Warriors

By Dane CarbaughJun 3, 2018, 11:47 PM EDT
Leave a comment

LeBron James played well again in Game 2 on Sunday night against the Golden State Warriors. The Cleveland Cavaliers star followed up his 51-point performance in the Game 1 with a near triple-double of 29 points, 13 assists, and nine rebounds.

Still, it just wasn’t enough.

Despite double-digit contributions from three other starters and reasonable shooting percentages throughout most of the game, the supporting cast for the Cavaliers could not measure up to the intensity brought by the reigning world champions. Even worse, three players attributed with 49 of Cleveland’s most vital bench minutes combined for just nine points. Those players — Kyle Korver, Jeff Green, and Larry Nance — collectively shot 2-of-11 with 10 rebounds and three assists.

Meanwhile, despite lacking Andre Iguodala, the Warriors’ supporting cast was what you’d expect from such a disciplined squad. David West grabbed a few rebounds, dished a couple assists, and had three blocks in 11 minutes. Shaun Livingston went 5-of-5 from the field. JaVale McGee, who started, scored 12 points and didn’t miss a shot from the floor.

The differentiation in play between Golden State’s and Cleveland’s role players was not just the story of Game 2, but it’s what sets them apart fundamentally in roster construction and organizational strategy.

It’s a running joke on Twitter at this point, but the idea that Nick Young and McGee are contributing minutes to Golden State (they combined for 36 on Sunday) is wild beyond our NBA-watching dreams. It’s something you’d only expect to click for the Warriors or perhaps the San Antonio Spurs. But while that meme runs its course on social media, the reality is that Cleveland is running out a roster of players with similarly historically low expectations with very different results.

Jordan Clarkson looks like he’s not ready to be a rotation player; Rodney Hood nearly got DNP-CD’d again (he played garbage time on Sunday); Green looked extremely Jeff Green-y; Tristan Thompson didn’t contribute to his salary level; Larry Nance Jr. got eaten alive against Warriors starters.

The gap between the stars on the Warriors and the stars on the Cavaliers is expansive. But the benches and role players, on paper and with Iguodala sidelined, are closer than we think. That’s doubly so when McGee and Young are getting significant run. It’s the execution that sets them apart, and as the rotation mixes over the game, how the stars are able to cover for their lesser teammates.

Cleveland isn’t the kind of team that’s going to be able to hide that many holes in a Finals matchup. They need their role players not just to fill in, but to push past their expectations in some kind of consistent manner. After Game 2 Tyronn Lue said as much, specifically with regard to Green.

“Jeff could be more assertive, I think,” said Lue. “[He needs to] be more aggressive offensively, not just settle for threes, [and] attack the basket.”

Green was important during Cleveland’s series against the Toronto Raptors, and vital to their Game 7 win over the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. But for the most part, Green hasn’t been able to handle his share, particularly when opponents have zeroed in on Love and Korver. That rang true again on Sunday when Green finished with six points, two rebounds, and one assists on 28.5 percent shooting.

In these NBA Finals, we’re seeing the truths our facts, figures, and theorems can teach us when put them into a real-life experiment. The result, for the Cavaliers, isn’t good. Outside of the record-breaking 3-point makes by Stephen Curry and the high-scoring of Kevin Durant are guys like Livingston, West, Kevon Looney, and even Jordan Bell, grinding away and playing their part. Cleveland hasn’t been able to find the same spark from their bench.

Golden State has been able to suppress the effectiveness of Cavaliers starters outside of LeBron, limiting Love’s shooting or keeping Thompson off the boards. That should naturally leave space for players with smaller roles to step up, but with the way the roster is constructed and the continual failure to get just about anything out of their bench, the reality of Who the Warriors Are vs. Who the Cavaliers Are is here, and it’s clear.

LeBron can play as hard as he can. He has, really. Game 1 was a masterpiece, and Game 2 was an efficient, superstar kind of night. But no matter the effort from James, the averages always come to bear during a playoff series. That’s especially true during the Finals, and it’s not just Golden State’s stars that are better than Cleveland’s.

It’s their bench, too.

Stephen Curry hits wild, fadeaway 3-pointer over Kevin Love (VIDEO)

By Dane CarbaughJun 3, 2018, 10:31 PM EDT
1 Comment

Stephen Curry with this shot … boy. What do you even do to try and stop the Golden State Warriors point guard?

During Game 2 of the 2018 NBA Finals on Sunday night, the Cleveland Cavaliers did not have an answer for the Warriors star during the fourth quarter.

During one play halfway through the period, Curry seemed to be locked down by Cleveland big man Kevin Love. However, as the shot clock neared zero, Curry hit a wild, fallaway 3-pointer that nearly touched the rafters at Oracle Arena.

The result was a clean swish and a demoralizing bucket for the Golden State Warriors.

Via Twitter:

Curry would go on to tie the record for 3-pointers made in an NBA Finals game with his next triple, giving him eight for the matchup to tie Ray Allen. He would eventually hit his ninth three, making Curry the sole record-holder.

LeBron James gets tackled, Ty Lue gets a tech for arguing (VIDEO)

Getty
By Dane CarbaughJun 3, 2018, 10:01 PM EDT
14 Comments

People were not happy about the officiating in Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals. They are unlikely to be happy with the results after Sunday’s Game 2 performance by the boys in gray.

The NBA installed a different officiating crew for Game 2 in Oakland between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers, but there were still several questionable calls that left fans on both sides scratching their heads.

One play in particular was an outlet pass by Kevin Love to LeBron James in the third quarter. LeBron was being guarded by Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry, who wound up sort of colliding with James and tackling him to the ground.

Officials did not think the play warranted a call, and LeBron ended up turning it over. That resulted in quite a bit of complaining from James and Cavaliers head coach Ty Lue, who received a technical foul.

Via Twitter:

No matter the results of Sunday’s matchup between these teams, the officiating will continue to be a source of chatter online as the league tries to solve a problem they have had all season long.