The good news is the Cleveland Cavaliers have done an outstanding job defending Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, holding them to a total of 55 points combined in the first two games of the NBA Finals.
The bad news is everyone else wearing a Golden State uniform seems to be scoring at will.
Shaun Livingston has made all but three of the 14 shots he has taken. Leandro Barbosa? He has hit 10 of 12 shots from the floor.
Draymond Green, a career 34% shooter from three point range, although he did hit 39% this season, has made exactly half of his 14 attempts from beyond the arc in this series.
Despite the “Splash Brothers” hitting just 21 of their 51 field goal attempts (41.2%), the Warriors have knocked down 52% of their shots from the field.
That means everyone else is incredibly hot.
It probably won’t continue, but then again, neither will the struggles of the Western Conference champions top two scorers.
To compound Cleveland’s issues containing Golden State’s offense, the red hot shooting the Cavs showed throughout the playoffs has disappeared, with the wine and gold hitting just 37% from the floor.
That’s a good recipe for being down 0-2 in a seven game series.
On the other hand, it’s a seven game series, not three, so it’s not over yet, and if Tyronn Lue’s bunch can somehow defend their home court, it would be a best of three affair.
The lack of fouls called on the Warriors seems to have frustrated Cleveland, which sounds ridiculous because the Cavs have out shot their opponents in this series at the line, getting 44 attempts vs. 20 for Steve Kerr’s crew.
There are two issues with this.
First, Cleveland isn’t playing close enough defense on anyone to draw a foul.
Second, we believe that the Warriors are taking a page out of history, drawing on the mid-90’s New York Knicks, coached by Pat Riley, for their defensive philosophy.
Our observation is that if you bring the ball into the paint against Golden State, you will get fouled. The philosophy is the officials will not call every foul, or the games will last four hours, so if you hit someone every time, it simply won’t be called.
We have been watching basketball for a long time, and there is no way that every time the ball comes free inside that it is a clean play.
There was a picture that appeared on social media from Sports Illustrated’s web site showing Kevin Love being defended by Green, whose hand is clearly on Love’s wrist.
We don’t care how “tough” you are, it is virtually impossible to make an offensive move with the ball in your hand and your wrist in someone else’s.
Why the NBA is overlooking this? We have no answer. But that is why we don’t believe the Cavs “quit” on Sunday, it was simply frustration.
Think about playing a game where you are constantly fouled. You get mad and it’s tough to play.
This isn’t to say the Warriors aren’t a good defensive team. Their quickness at pretty much every position allows them to protect the paint and recover to cover shooters.
They are given some liberties in terms of reaching, grabbing, and slapping, particularly inside and near the basket.
There is no question the Cavs need to play better and shoot better. And they have to overcome the frustration with the lack of calls they are getting when they attack the basket.
A loss tomorrow night virtually ends the season. Lue and James will make sure everyone else knows that.
JK
Cleveland Sports Perspective 