of course its just one game but its an example . if that's your best defense instead of acknowledging hey maybe it isn't as easy as you think then that should tell you something
to further illustrate: The Warriors small lineup destroys everyone because of Green So far this season, the Warriors' dynamic super-small lineup -- Curry and Klay Thompson in the backcourt, Andre Iguodala and Harrison Barnes at the forward spots and Green at center -- have outscored teams by 60 points in 48 minutes played together, per NBA.com's stats page. The lineup has an effective field goal percentage of 76.2 percent and opponents have an effective field goal percentage of 44.6 percent against it. The efficiency differential is more than 60 points per 100 possessions. That's unfair. The craziest part is that it's no fluke, because this lineup did similar damage last season. That unit outscored opponents by 42 points in 102 minutes in the regular season last year and 38 in 111 minutes in the playoffs. The Warriors famously trounced the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals once they made it their starting lineup before Game 4. Green is the reason the unorthodox lineup is unstoppable. His versatility is as unique as Curry's offensive skill. Green can defend centers and switch to perimeter players with equal ease. He can handle the ball, shoot and pass. He might not be as talented as other players who defy traditional positions, but right now he's arguably the most well-rounded of them all. Green is the second best player on the league's best team Green is averaging just 12 points, the fourth best mark on his own team and 87th in the league. For a big man playing 34 minutes a game, his eight rebounds per contest are not an impressive number. What makes Green a star is his versatility. He ranks seventh in the league in assists per game, 22nd in blocks per game and 35th in steals per game. He can do it all. Traditional stats can't capture defensive impact, but the Warriors are five points better per 100 possessions on that end with him on the court as opposed to off. He's among the best in the league in defensive rating, defensive win shares and defensive box plus minus. Tune in to any Warriors game and the eye test will confirm what the numbers suggest. There's a reason Green finished second for Defensive Player of the Year last season trailing only Kawhi Leonard. Klay Thompson puts big scoring numbers, Harrison Barnes is the young gem and Andre Iguodala has a Finals MVP to show his worth, but they can't come close to approach the overall impact Green has. Only Curry can make that claim.
That's a pretty reasonable comparison. The "everything else" (plus okay scoring ability, especially with three point range) makes Green a top player today. The added elite scoring ability makes James a top-three player historically.
Adjust their offensive strategy? In other words, they would need to restructure their entire half-court offense into something unknown. Based on that, it sounds like losing Thompson would hurt worse than losing Green.
A one-game example shouldn't need a rebuttal. That's generally referred to as "cherry-picking". That's like claiming Wilt and Kobe are the two greatest scorers of all-time.
"cherry picking" is picking a game out of 82 games. Not the one game he missed this entire season. Like i said its an example that supports a point. You have yet to provide anything besides your own personal opinion based on the limits of what you see as far as the whole game of basketball
Green is the key to everything the Warriors do. If Green didn't exist, double-teams on Curry would severely curtail the Golden State offense. As it stands, a huge part of their attack is Curry drawing the double team above the three-point line, finding Green who attacks the resulting 4-on-3 and either gets an easy basket if no one helps, or else finds the open shooter for a wide-open three if a defender moves to cut off the lane. That's the base action. Obviously, defenses have their own way of responding to that and the Warriors have counter-actions, but all of it revolves around the singular abilities of Curry and Green. Thompson doesn't have singular ability, he's simply a really good but conventional player...he can shoot light's-out, drive a little bit and play very good defense. He's an All Star-caliber three-and-D guy...Curry and Green, in their own ways, are one-offs in the NBA.
Yep, that's cherry-picking stats. B/c we're arguing hypotheticals. When you argue hypotheticals, you're relying on opinions based on fact. The underlying fact on which I'm relying is that the majority of his assists come from Curry/Thompson acting as the playmaker by getting open and making shots that would be unmake-able by most players.
Why don't you think Barnes or Iggy could play that role? Iggy used to be the focal point of the 76er's offense. You don't think he could take advantage of a 4-on-3? Thompson's ability to accurately catch & shoot with a quick release is unconventional. Only a handful of players can do that. Curry/Thompson/Redick/Korver....anyone else?
and the fact that you still believe this is just ridiculous. especially by not even admitting hes a playmaker. The hypotheticals here is your spin on getting off topic on DG in the first place. first it was most of his assist come from curry/thompson catch and shoot. then its his assist come from people getting open themsleves. someone here obviously doesn't understand what a playmaker is. what I've been talking about who DG the player as is today. ive provided examples with lillard and cp3 using your logic that couldn't say anything about. you on the other hand nothing.
What do you mean "then"? Those are the same thing... Curry/Thompson are able to free themselves momentarily for a catch-and-shoot. Sure, the pass needs to be on time and on target, but the play relies on their quick release. Those examples are irrelevant. Lillard/Paul are ball-dominant playmakers who draw extra defensive attention and create opportunities for teammates. Green is a playmaker who relies on defensive attention being drawn elsewhere. There's a huge difference.
He could play that role, but he couldn't play the role of defending all five positions. He's a great defender, but he's a wing defender...he can't switch 1-5. Yes, you can say player X can handle one of Green's jobs and player Y could handle another of Green's jobs. The point is, you can't play Player X and player Y at the power forward position at the same time. Consolidating a lot of skills into one player is much, much more valuable than having three players who, combined, have all the skills covered. There isn't anyone in the league, outside of a younger LeBron James, who can do all the things Green can do (James obviously also has been a dominant scorer, which is what elevates him to one of the five greatest players ever). Not to mention, Green is what makes the Warriors' "death group" work. You can't legitimately play that small unless you have someone who can credibly defend a center...otherwise, you'll be destroyed on the other end at least as much as you destroy teams. But the Warriors don't have to trade anything...they defend at a very high level while killing teams offensively because all five players can dribble, pass and shoot. And Green makes that possible. Any team can play five wings at once...not every team can do that and still lock down on the defensive end, because they don't have Green.
Sure...Damian Lillard, Kevin Durant, Khris Middleton, Kawhi Leonard all jump immediately to mind. They're not all the same type of player or all equally good (Leonard, of course, is much better) but they're all guys who can catch-and-shoot consistently accurately with a quick release. Thompson is not wildly unusual. He's really good, but he's good in a way that we've seen plenty of times and will see many more times. Curry and Green are good (great) in ways that are extremely unusual and warp the game in unusual ways. The Warriors would be worse without Thompson but they'd be much worse without Green.
