Not true. That worked in a sense as they managed to keep their scoring low (I think the Cavs earned some credits there) But the rest is spot on. You also touch on a tging people fail to realize. Did Curry play bed? Yep. Was he still the center of the game? Yep! Curry's presence determined the Cav's gameplan. In this case his play wasn't MVP worthy, but his presence still overshadowed everyone else.
This. Unless a new super team is formed somewhere, the Warriors could develop into a dynasty similar to the Bulls of the 1990's. Cleveland is not going to win a championship if their big 3 plays more like the big 1.
Wow this thread has gone of the rails. I voted Warriors in 6. But I think the cavs will not make it to game six. The Warriors have a great team that plays team basketball. I really do not like the way the cavs try to play this. Getting the missmatch and playing 1 on 1 the entire game.
I wouldn't overreact from one game. The Warriors looked dead in the water after getting blown out two straight games in OKC, and we all know how that turned out. This was a weird game, with the GSW bench making up for Steph/Klay.
Uh... no. Did you even watch the game? If it was "Curry's presence" that allowed GSW to win, then they would have played better with Curry in the game. Instead, they only blew the game wide open when Curry was actually sitting. Whenever Curry came back into the game, the Cavs actually made a run.
Of course, that's reality: Curry wasn't winning the game by his prowess (he was shut down). His team (bench) won by overpowering the Cavs. But he was still the most important focal point of the game and had a very big part in making the Cavs break down (that's what they did). Because they were utterly focussed on Curry (who wasn't!) . The assumed they would overpower the warriors if they managed to shut down Curry and then take down Klay, which is actually quite logical (I dare say everyone thought that's the recipe in beating GSW). Who would have expected the bench to crush Lebron and Co? Nobody. I'm not accounting superpowers to Curry... it's simply that shutting him down was AND is foremost on everyones mind. Just as managing Lebron will always be a huge part of destroying the Cavs. Curry will be the focal point of any strategy the Cavs will execute.
This isn't saying much. Like you pointed out, every team sets up a game plan to stop every team's superstar. Teams prepare a game plan to stop the likes of Lebron, Westbrook, Durant, Harden, etc - just like the Cavs had a game plan out to stop Curry and Klay. The difference here is that if those other guys are shut down, their supporting squad isn't good enough to step up and blow out the opponent. Curry simply has it good enough where he literally doesn't have to do anything and still win games/championships. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if they sit Curry the rest of the series and the Warriors still destroy the Cavs.
Hyperbole. He's the best player on his team by a huge distance. Yes, this game he was effectively out of it and the bench saved his sorry hiney. But without him the Warriors don't make it to the finals. Heck, in the stretch were everyone was oh-ing and ah-ing Klay Curry statwise outplayed him. Next games we will see the Cavs trying to get a better balance and they will be torched by Curry for it.
I know that. This is actually exactly why I thought before the series start that the Cavs have zero chance against the Warriors. But again, this is more a testament to how good his supporting cast is. Is Curry ridiculously good? Yes, but no other superstar in the league has the amenities bestowed upon Curry. If any superstar in the league gets taken out of the game or doesn't show up, that team has slim to no chance at beating another top 5 team in the league.
Let's see what could possibly go wrong for Cavs: 1. weak bench 2.the bigs are weak 3. uncontested in the playoffs 4. A finals loss from last season 5. weak perimeter shooting
Without a bench, a supporting cast and a guy like Iggy in your lineup? You won't be winning championships anytime soon. That's for sure.
lol i laughed right when this happened after shumpert failed to close out on iggy correctly his 3 pt shot.
The only way for this Cavs team to have a chance to beat the Warriors is to go on a 3pt shooting spree and to be able to shoot them at a high % as they did with the Piston and Hawks series. The Warriors weakness is protecting the 3pt line because their style calls for the paint to be clogged and initiate fast breaks. They have a competent 3pt shooter in JR. Smith, Love and Irving so its very possible that they can win a couple of games on this alone.
From what I have seen from game one, GS >>>Cleveland, if Curry and Thomson are on, this series will be over in a heart beat.
curry and klay had a terrible game. true but... i had the feeling that if the cavs had presented a challenge in the fourth quarter, one of them would have gone off. but... they didn't need to. They each hit a three and it was game over. They've had a lot of games like that. Where they were mediocre the whole game and then went off in the fourth. I honestly think the biggest challenge the warriors will have in this series is finding the motivation to play at a high level.
i look at this... and then I think of Klay Thompson in game six. Picked his team up, by himself and said... hell no I ain't going home. And dropped 11 threes. I can see Jordan or Bird doing the same thing. Lebron just isn't that kind of guy. He literally gets said, or slumps, or pouts, or... he actually gets cramps. lmao
don't think its a weakness at all. they actually closed out very well last night as evident by jr smith being non existent and on many of kevin love's shots. you can tell thats a point of emphasis for certain guys on clev as far as GS defensive game plan. They're just closing out hard on specific guys